Dreams of Amber
by Ephemeralda
Summary: Being a nanny is easy. Not. Ask Sakura...thrown in the midst of spoilt brats, uptight employers, kidnapping plots, fashion world politics & strange dreams. Oh, and did we mention her crush on her arrogant amber eyed boss?
1. Chapter 1

**Story Notes**

_There are a few 'Sound of Music' references in this fic. The beginning, especially, is similar but that's about the only similarity there is (I love the movie, by the way). The "Sakura is the nanny of Syaoran's children" plot has been done so many times anyway, but mine is (hopefully) different._

_This story takes place almost entirely in Hong Kong. I myself have never been to HK. I'm basing this on information I find on the net. Please ignore any mistakes that may crop up due to this. Since Hong Kong was under the control of the UK until a few years back, I'm guessing that the laws there would be the same as in Europe. Or maybe not. So please overlook any errors in the story due to such an assumption as well._

_As for characterization, Li Yelan (Syaoran's mother) is sort of the antagonist in this story. Though, I've tried hard not to bash her character- I simply feel she's a woman with many principles and expects everyone around her to live by them. She loves her son and wants the best for him. But what she feels is "best" may not always keep him happy. Also I doubt she'd be too favourable to Sakura in an AU like this, where she's not the card-mistress, but a nanny to her grandkids._

_There are also many OCs in this fic and they play a semi-important role in the development of the story._

* * *

_**Dreams of Amber**_

Author: _Ephemeralda  
_Beta-reader:_ AkemiLove_

**Chapter 1**

Sakura looked at the newly wedded couple now slow-dancing to the music. She smiled sadly at how happy they seemed in each other's arms, as if they belonged there. As if they were in love…

She wondered how it felt like to be in love. She had heard Tomoyo saying that the feeling was indescribable—like magic. It was how she felt like when she was with Eriol.

Sakura had never felt like that with anyone, but she wanted to.

"And to think that could have been your wedding." Sakura turned to find her best friend looking at her keenly.

"Well I'm glad it isn't Tomoyo. Kagami and I were never meant to be," she said, turning her forest-green eyes back to her ex and his bride.

Tomoyo didn't seem convinced. "Are you sure Sakura? I remember you calling me up a dozen times asking if you did the right thing by turning down Kagami's proposal."

"I remember too. That was two years back—I was just seventeen and I wasn't sure about my feelings. Now I am. Kagami was just a teenage crush."

"Hmm…" her friend said skeptically.

Sakura sighed. "Okay, fine. Do you know the real reason why I dated Kagami? It was because he has brown eyes."

Tomoyo frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You know, whenever I close my eyes and think of how the man of my dreams would look like, all I see is a pair of intense amber eyes." She closed her eyes. "Eyes you'd want to lose yourself in. Eyes that would make you feel warm and protected…"

She opened her eyes on hearing a giggling sound. "Sakura, you sound like a lovesick idiot."

She pouted. "I share my biggest secret with you and this is the reaction I get."

Tomoyo smiled. "Oh fine—I'm sorry. So tell me, what does this have to do with you having gone out with Kagami?"

"Well, I told you. He has brown eyes."

"So?"

"So, his eyes were the best match I found to those amber eyes in my dreams. Maybe not as intense or alive, but—" she was cut off by Tomoyo's laughter. She frowned. "Why, what's so funny?"

"Sakura," she said amidst giggles. "You dated Kagami just because he has brown eyes?"

"Well… he's also good-looking, and he's not such a bad guy either…"

"Oh Sakura, you're such a dreamer! And you're so adorable, so—"

"_Kawaii_… I know, I know. Now let's not get started on _that_ subject."

Her best friend smiled. "Fine. So… you no longer have any feelings for Kagami?"

"No, he's nothing more than a good friend to me. Too bad I realized that too late. The magic was just not there in our relationship. I'm glad he's with Miyu, not me."

Tomoyo shrugged. "Well, if you say so. But sometimes I get the feeling he never got over you completely," she said, pointing with her eyes towards Kagami.

Sakura noticed that he had stopped dancing with Miyu and was now walking towards them. However she laughed at her friend. "Don't be silly, Tomoyo. He's married now."

Tomoyo walked off after giving her a wink and a sly smile, and Sakura was left shaking her head in indignation. It was tough to have Daidouji Tomoyo as your best friend. She thought she was all-knowing in the department of love and made all kinds of weird assumptions…

"A dance, Sakura? Just for old time's sake?" a familiar male voice startled her out of her thoughts. She saw Kagami's deep brown eyes staring at her face eagerly. She smiled and took his hand as he led her towards the dance floor.

…but sometimes it was quite scary how right Tomoyo was in such matters…

* * *

"Morning Dad," Sakura stifled a yawn as she walked out of her room. 

Fujitaka looked up from his newspaper and smiled. "Good morning Sakura."

She looked around the room as if searching for someone. "Where's Touya?"

"Touya? Why, he's gone to meet Yukito."

"So early?"

Fujitaka sipped his tea. "Yes, he said he wanted to discuss something very important with Yukito."

Sakura shook her head to get rid of her drowsiness and headed for the kitchen.

"If it's breakfast you're looking for, it's here on the table," her father called out. "Oh, and by the way, a letter came for you yesterday when you had gone to that wedding."

She looked at him. "A letter? From whom?"

He shrugged. "I don't know—it looked official. It's kept in that drawer there."

Sakura opened the drawer Fujitaka was pointing to and found the letter addressed to her. She turned it around to find a small stamp at the back of the envelope. It read—_Tomoeda Job Agency_.

"Oh! It's from that Job Agency where I had registered," she exclaimed, tearing the letter open. "Maybe they got a job for me… finally."

Fujitaka looked at her enquiringly. "Well what does it say?" He saw her eyes widening as they scanned the contents.

After having completed reading it, she looked up, her eyes still wide, as if in a daze. "Oh. My. God. I'm going to _Hong Kong_!"

* * *

"_Li Syaoran?_ You are going to work for _the_ Li Syaoran?" 

Sakura nodded excitedly at a wide-eyed Tomoyo. "Isn't that great?"

"Oh Sakura, you're so lucky…"

"I know! I can't believe this—I'm actually going to Hong Kong! I've always wanted to go there," Sakura said, almost jumping in excitement.

Tomoyo shook her head. "No, I meant—you're actually going to get to see the handsome Li Syaoran up close almost everyday! Forget Hong Kong!"

The auburn-haired girl regarded her friend keenly. "How do you know he's handsome? You haven't even seen him yet."

"Oh yes I have. In fact I've met him. Remember I had gone with mom last year for that fashion show in Tokyo? Well he was the chief guest, and he flew all the way from Hong Kong. He was interested in it of course, what with the Lis being the biggest fashion house in the whole of Asia."

Sakura stared at her in awe. "Wow! So what's he like?"

"Drop dead gorgeous," Tomoyo sighed. "And such a gentleman. I have to admit I developed a crush on him, even though I was dating Eriol. And he was so jealous."

"Eriol was jealous?" Sakura asked, laughing at the absurdity of the statement.

"Uh-huh. He didn't like it very much when I would go on and on about Li Syaoran," she said, grinning. "Now _I _am jealous of _you_. You get to be around him all the time."

Sakura smiled at her, and looked at the letter in her hands thoughtfully. Then suddenly she snapped her head up, as if she had just realized something. "Tomoyo! You're making it sound as though Li Syaoran just asked me out on a date! I'm going there to be the _nanny_ of his _children_. He's married, for crying out loud!"

"He _was_ married," Tomoyo corrected her.

"Whatever," she said, rolling her eyes.

"You know most girls would die to be in your place."

"Yeah, most girls with no morals. He's my _employer_ and I'm like… like his servant or something," she retorted, getting flustered.

Tomoyo smirked. "Okay, fine! You don't have to get all angry—I was just pulling your leg." Sakura looked at her best friend and pouted. Tomoyo smiled, stepped forward and gave the emerald-eyed girl a hug. "Look, I'm really happy for you. It's just… I'm going to miss you…" she said softly, closing her eyes.

She returned the hug and smiled sadly. "I'll miss you too."

They remained in the embrace for a moment before Tomoyo suddenly let go. "Sakura! You know what this means? We've got loads of shopping to do, and I've got loads of dresses to make for you!"

Sakura groaned. "Tomoyo…"

Tomoyo however started dragging the reluctant girl by the hand. "Look. No excuses, okay? You're going to the house of a fashion guru. You've got to look your best, even if you're just his nanny."

* * *

She sighed as she felt the wind hitting her face, gently swirling her auburn locks as she rested her head against the car window. She saw Tomoyo observing the passing buildings at the other end of the car seat. They were going shopping, for what, Sakura had no idea. 

But still, the whole thing was turning to be like a wonderful dream. Sure she would miss Tomoeda, and her family and Tomoyo, but the thought of going to Hong Kong and working for the Lis, made up for it.

She closed her eyes in anticipation, imagining what her new job would be like…

'_Sakura…' she heard a soft voice. She turned around to face a pair of intense amber eyes._

Sakura gasped and opened her eyes with a start.

"Sakura? What…" Tomoyo asked, concerned.

"Nothing. It's nothing… just a dream…"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Sakura stared at the shopping bags lying on the floor of Tomoyo's room in the Daidoujis' house. "Tomoyo, _how_ am I going to carry this stuff all the way to Hong Kong?"

"Umm… in your bag?" her friend suggested meekly.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "You know I don't even need half this stuff. I'll just take what's necessary, and you can keep the rest," she said, sorting through the packages.

"And what am _I_ supposed to do with all these dresses?"

"I don't know… wear them?"

"But I already have so many dresses!"

"And thanks to you, so do I. Moreover, I have enough things to worry about," Sakura said frowning.

"Like what?" Tomoyo asked.

"Like that interview at the job agency tomorrow."

"But why should you worry about that? You've already been selected."

"Yes, but they want to be sure if I am the right person for the job. And I have to be convincing enough."

Tomoyo smiled at her friend. "Oh come on, you'll be alright."

"Yeah maybe… but that isn't what's worrying me the most."

"Then what is?" she asked, confused.

Sakura bit her lip and looked at her, her face anxious. "Touya."

* * *

"…and so I'm going to Hong Kong," Sakura finished, looking at her brother apprehensively, as if expecting an explosion any minute. She had chosen to tell him about her new job when Yukito was also with him. She knew he was the only one who could convince or control Touya.

Touya stared at her for a while as if thinking of something. Then he shrugged. "Okay," he said, and went back to reading a book.

Sakura blinked. "You're okay with this?" she asked incredulously. She saw that Yukito was looking at her brother and smiling knowingly.

"Yeah," he said without looking up from his book.

Sakura frowned, confused. This wasn't what she had expected. She had been preparing herself for a big argument with him. She had even learnt a speech by heart on how important it was for her to get a job of her own and be independent, and other things on the same line.

"So you don't mind me going to Hong Kong?"

"Nope," he said, his attention still on the book.

"All alone?"

"Nope."

"So far away?"

"Nope."

"And you're not going to get on the overprotective brother mode and try to stop me?"

"No."

Sakura should have felt relieved after hearing this but instead for some reason, she felt irritated. "But… but I want you to," she blurted out

"Want me to what?"

"Create a big scene. Stop me from going," she said unreasonably.

He finally looked up from his book to stare at her oddly. "But I thought you never liked all that."

Sakura stood up angrily and folded her arms. "Well—I… you…" she stuttered, trying to explain. Finally, she shook her head and stamped her feet. "So don't you _care_ about me anymore? You don't care if go to Hong Kong, all alone, so far away?"

"Hmm… yes I do."

"Then why are you sitting there so _calmly_? Aren't you supposed to be fighting with me, yelling at the top of your voice or something?" she said shrilly, her face contorted in annoyance.

"Well that's because I told him not to." She felt a hand on her shoulder, and turned to see Yukito standing next to her.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Believe me, your brother was totally overreacting the moment he saw that letter."

Sakura blinked. "You read that letter?"

"Yeah… I did." Touya replied absently.

"And came straight away to my house, ranting about how 'thick you were to register in some god-forsaken job agency, which was planning to send you to work as a servant in Timbuktu'. Weren't those your exact words, Touya? Hmm?"

Touya mumbled something and turned away.

"Oh I see." Sakura glared at her brother, but there was a trace of a smile on her lips.

"And I couldn't let the same kind of rant be inflicted upon you. So we talked and talked until I convinced him to keep his mouth shut and forget about stopping you from getting your own job."

Sakura smiled at Yukito and hugged him. "Thanks Yukito. You're the best."

"You're welcome, Sakura. But the point is—your brother was very much worried about you. So you don't have to get all upset thinking that he isn't," he said, after breaking free from the hug.

"Well actually, I was more worried about those people in Hong Kong, now that you are going there," Touya said, his eyes locked on the ceiling and his hands behind his head. "Those poor souls. How I pity them." He ducked from a book that came flying towards him.

* * *

"I'm sure you're the right person for the job, Ms. Kinomoto. But there are some things I wished to discuss with you."

Sakura nodded in understanding at the interviewer at Tomoeda Job Agency. She was a slim, middle-aged lady, sitting straight in front of her desk. She seemed a very authoritative person and it made Sakura feel a bit nervous.

"There's nothing to feel scared about," the woman said, as if reading her mind. "I just wanted to tell you that this is a temporary post."

"Temporary post?"

"Yes, for two years. But the experience will be excellent. And it could lead to a permanent post with another family out there."

"Oh."

The woman observed Sakura through her glasses. "I suppose you already have a bit of background information about the family from the letter you received from us."

"Oh yes. There are two children, five years olds, one boy and one girl. Twins, aren't they?"

"Yes, but from what I've heard, they're a bit difficult, especially the boy. It seems their father has spoilt them rotten."

"I'm sure I can manage that. I really like children," Sakura said eagerly.

"I'm glad to hear that," the interviewer smiled. "And you know about Li Syaoran, of course." Sakura nodded.

"He particularly asked for a Japanese nanny. That and your knowledge of their language made you the only candidate."

"Well, my schoolgirl Cantonese is a bit rusty..."

"That's okay. You'll pick up once you get there." She got up from the chair and perched herself on the desk, near the chair where Sakura was sitting. "You look like a very simple and sweet girl—I think you're perfect for the job. And they need a nanny quite urgently. You see, the children have been going through a tough time—with their parents separating."

"Yes, I heard about that in the gossip columns. Their mother's an actress, isn't she?"

The woman nodded. "Chang Fu, a famous Chinese actress. The kids were quite attached to her and the divorce was a bit of a shock to them. It's quite tough—at such a young age." She remained silent for a while before continuing. "But it hasn't been very easy for Li Syaoran either. The last nanny left very quickly—well actually, she was given the sack."

Sakura's eyes went wide. "Why?"

"Hmm… I'm not sure. I guess she wasn't good enough. But don't worry, I think you'll be good." She smiled at her. Then getting off the desk, she said, "So I take it that you're accepting the post."

"Yes."

"Well then you better start packing your bags. You're catching the flight on Saturday."

"This Saturday? So soon?"

"Mr. Li wants a nanny pretty soon. He's an impatient man."

"But what about the Visa?"

"That'll be arranged in a couple of days."

"Oh, okay." Sakura felt a thrill of excitement—all this was happening so fast.

"Well Ms. Kinomoto, that's all I wished to discuss with you." She stood up. "I wish you all the very best for your new job."

* * *

_She squinted at the scene before her. It was slightly blurred but she could make out that it was dark outside. And as she stood there, she could see bright lights gradually lighting up the darkness. Several high-rise buildings stood before her and she realized she, herself, was standing on one of the tallest. Could this be Hong Kong, she wondered._

_She gasped when a pair of arms wrapped around her waist and felt a warm breath tickling her earlobe. 'Looks beautiful, doesn't it?' a husky voice asked her, and she nodded. 'Just like you…' she heard, before soft lips descended down her neck, leaving a trail of kisses. Her breathing fastened, and so did her heartbeat._

_Slowly the arms let go of her and the lips came up to kiss her on the cheek. 'Look at me' the voice ordered gently and she turned around._

_Amber eyes stared down at her with such passion it made shivers run down her spine…  
_  
Sakura opened her eyes wide to realize she was still in Tomoeda, and it was four a.m. in the morning.

'_A dream, only a dream' _she thought. _'But it had been so… so… real. The eyes… and that place I saw—that had to be Hong Kong._' She shifted in her bed thinking about what she had been dreaming. _'Was that some kind of premonition? Am I going to meet "Amber-eyes" in Hong Kong?'_

She giggled at the name she had just given her mystery man—Amber-eyes. It sounded perfect—she didn't know anything else about him except for the color of his eyes, anyway. _'I wonder what Tomoyo would say if she knew what I'm thinking right now.'_

She sighed and closed her eyes. She couldn't wait to catch the flight on Saturday.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"I might come to Hong Kong soon, you know. My mom has to go there often as part of her job, so we won't be apart for long. Don't forget to e-mail me." Sakura looked out of the plane's window, remembering Tomoyo's parting words. It would be great to see Tomoyo if she ever came to Hong Kong, but she wondered if she'd be allowed to. And she doubted she would get access to a computer to send her an e-mail.

She marveled at the beauty of the sea below, over which they were flying. But suddenly she was hit by a pang of sadness. Would that mean she would be cut-off from her family and friends for two years? She had not thought about that…

Her thoughts were interrupted by an announcement by the flight attendant requesting the passengers to fasten their seat belts. They were nearing their destination.

Sakura scanned the numerous faces at the airport. The interviewer at the job agency had told her that Mr. Li would be sending someone to pick her up. And sure enough, she spotted a placard with the sign—Kinomoto Sakura.

She walked up to the person bearing it. "Hello, I'm Kinomoto Sakura."

The placard was lowered to reveal a young man. He widened his eyes. "Wow! The boss always manages to get the most beautiful women to work for him!"

She blushed at the comment. The guy must have been in his early twenties, dark-haired with sea-green eyes and an accented voice. She could see that he was not from these parts.

"Oh, by the way, I'm Dan Blake, the great Li Syaoran's driver, been sent to pick the lovely lady up," he said, bowing elaborately. Sakura couldn't help but smile at him. "And before you ask, your luggage has already been taken care of. So shall we?"

Sakura nodded.

* * *

"Oh don't worry. You don't have to be nervous. You'll soon get used to this place."

Sakura glanced at Dan and bit her lip. She was not used to seeing such tall skyscrapers and so many lights and noises. Tomoeda was a silent, little town and it was the first time she was coming into such a big city. She found it very intimidating and a bit frightening.

"You know, I know how you must be feeling. I was quite lost when I came here too," he continued, as he drove on nonchalantly.

"So you're new here too?"

"Been here only a month, I'm originally from England."

"Oh." England immediately reminded her of Eriol, which reminded her of Tomoyo, which reminded her of Tomoeda and Touya and dad and Yukito…

"You must be feeling homesick. But that happens. Once you start off with those children, you won't have time to think about anything," he grinned.

"Are they difficult?" she asked nervously.

"Difficult would be an understatement—especially for the boy."

Sakura gulped. "I heard the last nanny was sacked."

"Hmm… I don't know about that. But I'd bet she was driven away by those children." He chuckled at the look on her face. "Looks like I've made things seem a lot easier for you now."

"You sure did," Sakura said sarcastically, frowning and pale-faced. This was her first job and she wanted to do well. Not to be thrown out by a couple of kids. This was going to be much more difficult than she had thought it would be.

"I was just preparing you for the worst. Most girls would probably think working for the Li's is all glamour and fame. It's not. But then you should see it as a challenge. The kids need someone…" he trailed off, frowning. "And there's also the whole business about Chang Fu…"

"Mr. Li's ex-wife? What about her?"

He looked at her. "You don't know? Well she… or maybe I'll tell you later, we're there."

He stopped the car and Sakura finally got her first look at the Li mansion, standing behind a big and well-maintained lawn. She felt the car moving again as the gates opened.

Sakura was too engrossed in looking at the house to notice Dan stopping the car in front of it and getting out to open the door for her. He smirked at the awed look on her face. "You think _this_ is big? Wait till you see the Li fashion house."

* * *

"Master Yuan, Miss Lien, your new nanny is here." The two young children, busy playing in the garden, turned to look at the newcomer who had been introduced. "Why don't you introduce yourselves to her?" continued the maid, Lu.

Sakura smiled at the brown-haired, blue-eyed twins. "I'll start first." She kneeled down and said, "Hi, I'm Kinomoto Sakura. And you are?"

The girl looked at her tentatively. "My name is Li Lien."

"Pleased to meet you, Lien." She turned to the boy questioningly.

He frowned. "You already know my name—you heard Lu. Then why are you asking me again?" Sakura was caught off-guard by his reply.

"Master Yuan, that is no way to talk to your nanny!" Lu exclaimed.

Yuan folded his arms and looked away. "I don't need a nanny."

"Oh well, then we'll just be friends I suppose," Sakura said with a half-smile. He didn't answer.

Lu turned to Sakura. "Come with me, Miss Kinomoto, I'll show you to your room. You should freshen up a bit."

Sakura felt her confidence ebbing away as she followed Lu. She had wanted her first impression on the kids to be good. Well Dan had warned her…

"Here we are. And don't you worry about the young master. He's always like that with everyone. You'll take time to get along with him, but you need patience." She giggled as she opened the door. "Only those who survive Master Yuan can survive in the Li household. That's something that every nanny who left will remember all her life."

"You mean to say there has been more than one?"

"You are the thirteenth."

"_Thirteenth_?" Sakura gulped.

"Well, yes. I'm surprised no one told you." She led her into the room. "Oh, I forgot. Master Li and Miss Ross will be here for dinner this evening. So you better be dressed properly."

"Miss Ross?"

"Miss Lauren Ross, the world famous supermodel, Master Li's fiancée. Didn't you read about them in the tabloids?"

"No, I don't get much time to read them nowadays. I just know that he's divorced from Chang Fu."

Lu suddenly lowered her voice. "You better not mention _her_ during dinner. Don't want the master all upset. He has enough troubles already."

"Oh, okay," Sakura said, wondering what the whole 'Chang Fu business' that Dan had mentioned was all about. Maybe the relationship had ended on very bad terms.

So Li Syaoran was _engaged_. She wondered what Tomoyo would say to that. She'd probably have a heartbreak. 'Oh Sakura, that's so unlucky! Going all the way to Hong Kong just to know that he's off the market…' she could imagine Tomoyo saying, and she inwardly smiled. Then she suddenly remembered something.

"Lu, do you think there's any chance I can get access to the net? You see, I need to keep in touch with my friends and family at Tomoeda."

"Sure, there's a computer with connection in the servant's common room for our use. You can use it during your free time."

"Really? Wow, that's great! I never expected that." Sakura felt a lot better after realizing that she would be able to talk to Tomoyo after all.

"I'll go now. You can call me, or Dan, or Wei if you need anything." Saying that, she left.

* * *

Sakura ran a hand through her blue dress, checking her reflection in the mirror. It was a simple, satin dress and one of her favorites from Tomoyo's creations. She felt it would be perfect for wearing that evening, in front of Li Syaoran and his fiancée.

A knock on the door shook her out of her thoughts. "Come in," she said.

It opened to reveal Dan, who looked at her and said immediately, "Whoa, you should give a poor bloke some warning before looking like that." He gave an indulgent grin at her blush. "I've come to escort you downstairs. Mr. Li is here," he continued, offering his hand and she took it. "You know, you do look pretty in that dress. Miss Ross shouldn't accuse you of trying to overshadow her."

Sakura laughed. "I don't think a supermodel would worry about a nanny in a three-year-old dress," she said, and wondered if Dan was so charming with every girl he met.

When she came down, she spotted three people sitting in the living room. Two of them were busy scanning through a bunch of papers. She guessed the brown-haired man was Li Syaoran, but she couldn't recognize who the black-haired woman, talking enthusiastically to him, was.

"That's Li Meiling," Dan whispered. "She's Mr. Li's cousin and assistant designer. I didn't know she was coming as well."

The third person was a beautiful woman with a faultless figure, flawless features and hair set in perfect blonde curls. She had a bored expression on her face and Sakura immediately recognized her as Lauren Ross.

Dan led her in and announced, "Here she is, Mr. Li, all the way from Japan—your new nanny."

Meiling looked up at her and smiled with a "Hello" while Lauren gave her a condescending stare, looking her up and down as if scrutinizing her. Sakura didn't like that look at all.

She then turned to Li Syaoran, who still seemed busy sifting through papers. "Good evening," he said without looking up. "Please sit down. Help her to a drink, Dan. I want to finish going through these designs before dinner."

Sakura felt hurt. He hadn't bothered to even look at her. Dan immediately sensed her dismay and spoke just loud enough for the other man to hear. "Mr. Li's always so busy. Don't worry Miss Kinomoto, he doesn't really mean to be rude."

She widened her eyes and blushed at his boldness. He shouldn't have said that, their boss would definitely be furious now.

But instead, Li Syaoran smiled and laid aside his work. "Please excuse me, Miss Kinomoto. That was unforgivable and Dan was right to remind me of my manners." His voice was deep and oddly familiar. "I'm Li Syaoran, as you know. I hope you had a pleasant journey." He looked up to directly meet her gaze, and she gasped.

_'Amber-eyes.'_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_'Oh. My. God.'_

Sakura was shocked speechless. It wasn't possible—'Amber-eyes' couldn't be Li Syaoran—it just couldn't be… but there was no mistaking those eyes…

She was jerked out of her thoughts when she felt Dan nudging her. She blushed when she realized that she had been staring and was supposed to answer the question posed to her.

"I-uh… yes—the journey was fine. Thank you, Mr. Li," she stammered, averting his gaze.

"Daddy!" Two eager young voices cut through the silence and Sakura turned around to see Yuan and Lien running into the living room with Lu behind them. They immediately climbed onto the sofa and sat on their dad's lap, with identical enthusiastic smiles on their faces.

Syaoran wrapped his arms around both of them and held them close. "My little mischief-makers," he laughed. "So what did you do today?"

"Oh nothing, Master Li. They both were very well behaved today after I told them that you were going to come," Lu answered. "And they also met their new nanny," she continued, looking at Sakura.

"Oh, so you two have met Ms. Kinomoto," he said, and then lowering his voice to a whisper, he asked them, "So what do you think of her?"

Lien looked thoughtful. "Umm… I like her a little because she's very pretty, isn't she?" she whispered back.

Syaoran chuckled. "So she is." Yuan however crossed his arms and didn't say anything.

"Well did you say hi to Meiling and Lauren?" he said, gesturing towards his two companions.

"Hi kids, nice to see you again!" Meiling said jovially, smiling, and the two children greeted her back. They seemed to like her.

With Lauren Ross however, it was a different case. She looked at the kids and smiled, but it never reached her eyes. The kids didn't seem to be very fond of her. Yuan scowled at her and Lien gave a half smile.

"So let's go to have dinner, shall we? It's been a long time since I ate with my family." He stood up, gently removing the twins from his lap.

"Sure, Master Li. The cooks have prepared your favorite dish…" Lu began, but her sentence was cut off by the ringing of Syaoran's mobile.

"Please excuse me. You all go ahead. I'll just take a minute." Saying that, he disappeared into another room, deep in conversation with the person who had called him.

Sakura entered the spacious dining hall, behind the others, and politely stood by watching as the two women and twins seated themselves at the table. Dan came to stand beside her. "You know, most women have the same reaction when they meet Li Syaoran."

"Hmm?" It took a moment for her to figure out what he was talking about. "No… I-it was…"

He chuckled. "It's so easy to make you blush. But you look pretty when you blush." He smirked, and Sakura was now sure that he was flirting with her, and quite blatantly at that.

Her attention was diverted when Li Syaoran entered the room. He didn't look very happy. "I-err…" He looked at everyone guiltily. "I can't stay for dinner…"

The twins looked at him wide-eyed. "Not again Daddy!" Yuan yelled, and Lien bit her lip. They both looked extremely disappointed.

And so did Syaoran. "I'm sorry. But I have to go—it's important." He turned to Meiling. "Meiling, I guess you should come with me. It's about those new costumes. Something's wrong and they can't do without our help."

"But honey, it's been such a long time since we all had dinner together." This was spoken by Lauren Ross.

Syaoran frowned and looked away. "I'm sorry." And he looked like he meant it. "Dan, I need you to drive up to the fashion house." He turned around and walked off without saying anything else. Dan and Meiling followed him.

Everyone was silent after the exit. Lu cleared her throat. "Well, Master Yuan, Miss Lien, why don't you sit down? The cook will be bringing food soon."

"I DON'T want any food!" yelled Yuan. "If Daddy doesn't have time to eat with us, I don't want any food!" saying that, he ran towards the staircase and up to his room.

Lu sighed. "Miss Lien?"

Lien shook her head and opened her mouth as if to say something, then closed it again. Sakura immediately felt sorry for her. She walked towards her and kneeled before Lien. Then using her right hand, she tilted her chin up. "Lien, you don't have to be sad. Your father was busy so he had to go, he'll have dinner with you tomorrow."

Lien pushed her hand away. "No he won't. It's always the same—he is always too busy. He has no time for brother and me."

Sakura sighed. "Lien, I know how you feel…"

"No you don't!" Lien cried.

"I do, Lien. Because I've been in the same position. I don't remember my mother—she died when I was three. And Father used to always go away for his archaeological expeditions. And my brother and I would be left alone." She wiped away a single tear that ran down Lien's cheek.

"R-really?"

Sakura nodded. "But at least you have Lu, Wei and now me to be with you, right?" She smiled at her.

Lien looked at her unsurely then managed to smile back weakly.

"Now that's like a good girl. Come on, don't let yourself remain hungry over such a small thing," Sakura said, and Lien nodded.

Sakura's eyes met Lu's, who was looking at her with deep admiration, and Sakura felt a sense of achievement.

* * *

Sakura sighed as she combed her hair, sitting in front of the mirror in her room. Out of all the people to have the same eyes as that of 'Amber-eyes', it had to be Li Syaoran. She felt her heart beat faster as she remembered her vividly detailed dreams.

No, it was not possible. Li Syaoran couldn't be the man she had been dreaming about. It was just a coincidence that his eyes were of the same colour. He was her _boss_ and she was _the nanny_ of his children. She was quite sure that the dreams were some sort of premonition, some thing that was going to happen for real in the future. And she couldn't imagine that Li Syaoran would ever kiss her…

She shivered at that thought. _'Sakura_,' she scolded herself mentally. _'What are you thinking? Get a grip on yourself_.'

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. "Come in."

She got up and turned around to find Lauren Ross standing in the doorway. "Miss Ross?"

Lauren regarded Sakura closely. "Hello, Miss-er… sorry, I didn't get your name."

"Kinomoto. Kinomoto Sakura."

"Yes, Miss Kinomoto." She walked in and sat down on the chair. She then crossed her legs and looked up at Sakura. "I wanted to talk to you on the behalf of Li Yelan."

"Li Yelan?"

Lauren raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you haven't heard of Li Yelan. She's the founder of the Li fashion house and Syaoran's mother."

"Oh. But I didn't see her."

"Yes, because she has gone for a conference to Paris and won't be coming back till next week," Lauren answered, waving her hand casually. "So she has instructed me to talk to you about your… duties."

"Oh."

"I must say that you had put up quite a performance downstairs with Lien," she smiled mockingly. "Looks like you've already won her over."

Sakura didn't say anything.

"But of course the real challenge is Yuan. Let's see how you cope with him."

"I'll try my best, Miss Ross."

Lauren got up and turned to check her reflection in the mirror. "The other nannies before came here only because they wanted to become models, so we had to show them the door. Most girls want to come here only to earn fame and forget their real job." She glanced at Sakura. "I hope _you_ don't have any such ambitions."

Sakura widened her eyes. "Oh no, I would never even dream of becoming a model. Being a good nanny is all I want."

"Good. Then you can start off with the kids tomorrow. You better win them over before Li Yelan comes next Friday."

Sakura nodded. Lauren turned around and walked towards the door. "Miss Ross? There is one thing I wanted to ask."

Lauren frowned. "What is it?"

"Are the kids allowed to see their mother? I think I should get that clear from the beginning."

Lauren looked at her sharply. "Under no circumstances should the kids meet Chang Fu. She's a drunk and a dangerous woman. You'll learn the whole story about the messy divorce once the servants start gossiping. Syaoran has custody of the kids which is very unusual here and that's all you need to know for now." Saying that, she went out of the room, leaving Sakura to wonder what the whole business with Chang Fu was about. It definitely wasn't something good and it made her feel a bit worried.

As if the fact that Li Syaoran had amber eyes wasn't enough…


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Sakura nodded along as Lu gave her instructions about her job and how to handle the kids—especially Yuan. It was officially her first day as a nanny and she desperately wanted it to go without a hitch, but she couldn't get rid of the feeling of foreboding.

"You shouldn't be too harsh on Master Yuan. He's just a kid after all, who's been deprived of his mother's love," Lu said. "You should be a friend to him, not a nanny. That was the mistake the other nannies made. They tried to boss him around and you can't boss the young master around without suffering the consequences," she giggled. "Miss Lien practically channels her brother. His opinion matters a lot to her—she does what he does, which is why it is very important for you to make Master Yuan listen to you."

Sakura nodded again. This was going to be a lot more difficult than she had thought.

"But I think you'll manage," Lu continued looking at her appreciatively. "You seem different from the other nannies."

Sakura smiled and felt a bit of her confidence returning.

Lu stood up. "Well come along now, let's go upstairs to their room. They should have woken up by now."

"Don't tell this to the kids but Master Li will be here for lunch. He wants it to be a surprise," Lu whispered as they ascended the stairs.

"Oh."

"And umm… try not to lose your temper on the very first day."

Sakura blinked. "Why would I?"

Lu stopped in front of a room. "Well let's just say that the kids have a very unique way of welcoming every nanny." She smiled slyly and gestured towards the door. "Go ahead."

Sakura's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

The maid shook her head. "Nothing, just remember—Tit for Tat!" And with a mysterious wink, she walked off.

Sakura stared at her retreating figure and turned to look at the room she was standing in front of. The door was slightly ajar and the room was dark and silent. Too silent. She gulped and tried to figure out what Lu's cryptic remark meant.

'_Or maybe she was just trying to scare me. The children are probably asleep.'_ Feeling slightly braver with that thought, she pushed gently at the door.

Lu's remark became immediately clear when a bucketful of water—placed strategically on top of the door—toppled over, soaking her and giving her a bump on the head.

Her yelp of surprise was drowned out by a pair of high-pitched giggles. She looked up to find Yuan and Lien laughing at her expense. Lien was a bit restrained but Yuan was clutching his stomach and rolling on the bed.

'Try not to lose your temper on the very first day,' Lu's words echoed in her mind and she tried to calm herself.

"Good Morning, Lien and Yuan. Thank you for the wonderful welcome," she said loudly over the laughter, and felt her anger ebbing slightly when they stopped laughing to gauge her reaction. "Though I must say it wasn't very original."

Yuan frowned. "What do you mean?" He seemed slightly miffed at the fact that she wasn't creating a scene or yelling at them, and immediately Sakura felt her confidence return fully.

"Oh come on! A bucket of water on top of the door? That's so boring and overdone. Couldn't you come up with something more exciting?"

Yuan and Lien were now staring at her. This was obviously not the reaction they were expecting from her. "Something more exciting? Like what?" Yuan asked.

Sakura entered the room and drew back the curtains. "Like I'm going to tell you. You should come up with it yourself. Else where's the originality in that?"

She felt the stares following her as she examined the huge bars fitted onto the windows. She frowned—the bars made the room almost seem like a prison cell.

"What's the need of these huge bars?" she turned and asked the kids, who were still staring at her.

"I don't know. They were always there," Lien answered, then adding as an afterthought, "Why? Aren't they supposed to be there?"

Sakura shook her head. "No, I didn't mean it like that. Well, did you two brush your teeth?"

Lien nodded. Yuan was still looking at her in an odd way.

"And did you two take bath?"

Before Lien could answer, Yuan retorted. "What a stupid question! Can't you see we're still in our PJs?"

Sakura's lips thinned.'Try not to lose your temper on the very first day,' Lu's voice spoke in her mind again.

"Okay then, get going," she said cheerily. "Where are all your clothes kept?"

Lien pointed to a wardrobe standing in front of their beds and Sakura walked towards it, hands outstretched to open it.

"Wait. Aren't you going to change?" Yuan suddenly asked. Sakura turned and observed him. His look almost seemed to hold a challenge. She immediately understood what he was playing at.

With the bucket-of-water trick, he had wanted her to run away from the room and be forever apprehensive of entering it again. Or make her lose her temper and yell at them. But since she was doing neither of those things, he was looking for other ways to make her leave or get angry. Well two could play at that game.

"Why do I need to change? It's just a bit of water. It will dry soon." She shrugged. He was now genuinely looking confused and she suppressed the urge to giggle at his look.

She idly wondered how they had managed to play that trick. Surely they couldn't have come up with it themselves. She had a sneaking suspicion that Lu had helped them and decided to confront the maid later.

* * *

Sakura felt extremely pleased with herself as she stood outside the dining hall and watched the two kids eat their breakfast. Despite getting soaked, she had managed the first morning with the kids quite well and she was beginning to understand how to handle Yuan. He was constantly trying to challenge her into losing her nerve and the only way out was to beat him at his own game. Yelling at him would be like giving into him.

She smiled in satisfaction as she remembered how he had grudgingly obeyed her. He still didn't seem to like her, even though he had silently acknowledged the fact that she was not like the other nannies. But he would probably stop playing any more pranks on her from now on.

"_Just remember—Tit for Tat!"_ Sakura blinked, remembering Lu's words from earlier that morning. Of course! Tit for Tat! She couldn't let him get away with that prank. It would make her seem like a pushover. She was _so_ going to get even with those kids.

* * *

Sakura giggled and suppressed the urge to rub her hands in glee as she stood beside the door in Yuan's and Lien's room, a bucket full of water in her hands. She had decided that she was simply going to throw it on them as soon as they came up after eating their breakfast. She even had an excuse ready for her prank, "I forgot to greet you back after your heartfelt welcome."

She chuckled and fell silent when she heard some noise downstairs. The kids had probably finished their breakfast by now. It had already been some time since she had come up.

Standing in the room alone, her eyes again fell on the bars fitted on the windows, making her wonder again about their purpose.

'_Perhaps they are there to prevent the children from falling if they look too far out of the window,'_ she thought. But that didn't ward away another nagging feeling that the bars were placed not to prevent anyone from going out, but to stop anyone from getting in.

She shook away the thought as she heard noises outside the door. Sounds of fast footsteps climbing up the stairs and two high-pitched voices, clearly belonging to the kids, drifted in.

Straightening herself, she tightened her grip on the bucket. A click announced the opening of the door and without waiting, she closed her eyes and blindly swung the bucket, emptying the water.

A surprised gasp came from the doorway and she slowly opened her eyes to find a pair of amber eyes staring at her in shock.

A pair of amber eyes incidentally belonging to a certain Li Syaoran who was now standing stunned and dripping wet in front of her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

She should be writing a book about this: 'How to Royally Mess-up Your First Job' by Kinomoto Sakura. First, start having dreams about your boss before you meet him. Then, become speechless on the first meeting. Slowly, develop feelings for him overnight, and finally, on the very first morning, throw a bucket of water over him.

_'Well at least I haven't been given the sack. Things could have been much worse._' But that thought hardly managed to assuage Sakura's doubts that Li Syaoran probably hated her now.

She would have been yelled at by her boss if Yuan hadn't burst into laughter and Lien hadn't started giggling. For some reason, they found it extremely funny.

Looking at the kids' reactions, Syaoran's lips had curved into a grimace. Sakura winced, and desperately avoided looking at him. "Care to explain this, Miss Kinomoto?" he asked, one eyebrow raised and brown bangs still dripping water.

She had then gulped, and blushing furiously, blurted her explanation. At which Yuan and Lien had started laughing even more, if possible. "This is—ha ha—she's funn—ha ha ha—funny!" Yuan managed between peals of laughter.

Ignoring them, Syaoran had narrowed his eyes at her in irritation and said coldly. "That's hardly the way to teach discipline to kids. I hope you do know what you're doing, Miss Kinomoto."

She nodded, wincing at the coldness in his tone. '_Didn't Tomoyo say he's a perfect gentleman? Yeah, probably only to his acquaintances, not his servants.'_

"And I also hope you realize that this is a very expensive suit. And it should never be even touched by water, so you have effectively ruined it."

She had wanted to snap a retort at him—it was not like she had done it on purpose, but wisely decided to keep her mouth shut. She had also thought of offering to give-up her first salary, but realized the suit probably cost more than her one month's pay. So she had just kept quiet while her boss stalked away, shoulders bristling with annoyance and irritation.

The kids however, had continued laughing.

* * *

"Wow, that's some way to greet your boss!"

Sakura frowned. Being scolded by Li Syaoran in front of the kids was bad enough. Teasing from Dan was not what she wanted right now.

"You know, it's a good thing Li came in between. If Yuan had gotten wet, he would have probably created a big scene—fake being ill from catching a chill due to the water or something. And considering how much the kids are pampered, it would have gotten you into deep trouble," Dan continued thoughtfully.

Sakura thought over what he said. "Maybe…" She shook her head and buried her face in her hands. "God, this is so embarrassing! Now no one is going to take me seriously. How am I going to control the kids?" she said desperately.

Dan patted her shoulder gently though he tried hard to hide a grin. "Umm… I think you're taking this job way too seriously. You need to relax."

She looked up at him. There was a mischievous glint in his eyes and she didn't know if he was teasing her or being serious. "Relax?"

"Yeah… you know, take your time with the kids. You can't expect results in just one day." He shrugged.

She frowned and turned away, observing the kids as they played around in the huge garden.

"Listen Sakura, there's nothing to get upset about. Li's a moody man. He would have probably laughed the whole thing off if he were in a good mood. It was just your bad luck that he wasn't too cheery this morning—probably because he didn't get much sleep last night."

She turned back to face him. "My friend, she's a designer… she had—umm… met him before. She told me that he's a 'perfect gentleman'."

Dan snorted. "He has to be a 'perfect gentleman' to his clientele. What do you expect?"

"Oh."

"I've been his driver for over a month now. And if you ask me, Li's a very odd man. I stopped trying to figure him out two days after my appointment here. Sometimes he's this cold bastard, and the other times, he's the best boss you'll ever get." He leaned back against the bench they were sitting on with his hands behind his head for support. "I guess his estrangement with Chang Fu was a bit hard for him."

Sakura immediately sat up at the mention of Chang Fu. "Okay, you're going to tell me the whole story behind that before the suspense drives me crazy."

Dan grinned. "Everyone's been keeping you in the dark about that, eh?" Scratching his chin he continued. "Well, you know that a few years back Fu was the most sought-after actress in the Chinese film industry. That's when she married Li—I think the marriage was arranged by Li Yelan. Li's an international figure, but Fu wasn't, which bothered her a bit. So Fu decided to crossover to Hollywood as well, I suppose. But all her crossover films flopped miserably. Soon, she became a subject of ridicule for the media. They called her a wannabe-crossover-artiste and such."

Sakura nodded. "Yeah, I remember reading that in the tabloids. That was pretty harsh on her. But I've never heard about her since."

"That's because she stopped doing films altogether. And that's when the drinking problem started."

"Drinking problem?"

"Yeah, it was her way of forgetting and escaping. And the drinking just got worse with each passing day."

"And Mr Li allowed this to happen?"

Dan shook his head. "He's a very busy man. He couldn't baby-sit her the whole time. He tried to get her out of the habit, but there's only this much one can do when a person becomes an addict. It was too late by then and Fu was far too gone."

Sakura widened her eyes. "But what about the kids?"

"The kids were affected, obviously. They didn't understand what was happening to their mother and why there was so much tension between their parents."

Sakura felt a stab of pity and sympathy for Yuan and Lien. For such a tender age, they had gone through a lot for no fault of their own.

Dan continued. "Soon, both Li and his mother decided it was high time for a divorce. Fu of course wanted custody of the kids but Li wouldn't hear of it. There was a bitter court-battle which, Li finally won. The court couldn't obviously send the kids to a mother who was an alcohol-addict, but this ruling hit Fu pretty hard."

"Clearly, she's their mother after all."

He frowned. "She still hasn't given up though."

"What do you mean?"

He lowered his voice. "If you ask me, all that alcohol unhinged her brain or something. But she's out to get the kids by hook or crook. There have been many attempts by all kinds of people to kidnap the kids. And even though it's not been proven, there's a very good chance that Fu is behind that."

Sakura felt her eyebrows touch her hairline. "But why would she make people kidnap her own kids?"

Dan gave her a pointed look. "Kidnap them and whisk them off to a foreign country, where she and the kids can live in anonymity and Li would never be able to find them."

"A mother would never do that!"

"A mother would do anything to be with her kids," Dan corrected. "And like I said, she's also a bit unhinged."

Sakura stared at him, processing the whole story. It was then that something struck her. "The bars on the windows of the kids' bedroom!" she suddenly exclaimed.

Dan smirked. "So you noticed them. Yeah, they were placed after one such kidnapping attempt. The kids don't know. But Li knows, and there's nothing else he can do about it."

She shivered involuntarily. And here she used to think that the rich had an easy life.

Dan noticed her shiver and leaned forward. "Oh great, now I've scared you even more. You don't need to worry about all this. Li's quite paranoid anyway and he's not going to let anything happen." He placed his hand on her chin and tilted her face towards him. "You really need to relax a bit, you know…"

Sakura felt her eyes widening again. Dan was looking at her in a very familiar way. It was the kind of look 'Amber-eyes' gave her in her dreams, except that Dan's eyes were sea-green and no match for the fiery amber that took her breath away. She felt herself blush and lean away from his touch instinctively.

Dan smirked seeing her blush, and releasing her chin, he leant back against the bench. Running a hand through his hair, he said, "You might want to see more of Hong Kong, hmm? Maybe I could show you around sometime?" He glanced at her through the corner of his eyes.

"Dan, are you asking me out on a date?"

He chuckled. "Well if you want to call it that. I meant it to be more on a friendly level—we've known each other for hardly two days."

Sakura shook her head. "I don't think I'll be allowed to go around sight-seeing. Mine is a full-time job, and also considering the fact that I've started off on the wrong foot."

He stood up and stretched his arms. "Don't worry, we'll make some time." He winked at her. "Gotta go. Boss would be ready to go back to his workaholic self now. See you later."

* * *

Standing in front of the vast and beautiful Li gardens, Sakura gritted her teeth as Yuan leaned over to whisper something in Lien's ears, both looking at her in an amused way and then laughing merrily at her expense. '_This has gone far enough. If they are going to look at me like some comic relief just because of this morning's incident, they'll never ever listen to me_.'

She forced a fake smile. "Well now that you've shared jokes with each other and had the biggest laugh of your life, would you care to come inside and have dinner?"

"Or else what will you do? Throw water on us?" Yuan countered, and laughed heartily at his own joke, Lien accompanying it with her giggles.

_'Don't lose your temper…'_ Sakura tilted her head on one side and continued smiling. "Oh how very funny," she said, sarcasm evident in her voice. "Now—"

"Daddy! Will you have dinner with us as well?" Yuan interrupted her before she could even start her sentence. She turned around to find Li Syaoran standing at the house entrance and the kids running up to meet him. She immediately dropped her gaze.

"I'm sorry, but I have work to do. I just wanted to tell you two that I'm going," Syaoran said, a regretful smile on his face.

Lien pouted and Yuan frowned.

Syaoran shook his head. "Oh come on! I did have lunch with you two, right? Now be good and go have your dinner, okay? Run along." He gently pushed them towards the house and they reluctantly obeyed him.

Sakura observed the exchange. No matter what Dan had said about Li Syaoran being a moody man, he definitely was a different person when he was with his kids. It was something she had noticed last evening as well.

"Miss Kinomoto?"

Her surname being called out by her boss jerked her out of thoughts and made her realize that she was now alone with him. Immediately feeling self-conscious, she bit her lip and nodded, still avoiding his gaze.

Leaning against the doorframe, he said, "I wanted to talk to you about certain things."

Sakura felt herself panic. '_Certain things? What things? This morning's incident?' _

"No, I'm not here to discuss what you did this morning," he said, as though reading her thoughts. "Lu told me that you were acting on her advice of playing 'Tit for tat', though she wasn't expecting you to go so overboard. My kids might have found it funny but I don't approve of such things, nor does my mother. There are certain rules to obey when you're living in the Li household, and that's what I wanted to discuss."

"Rules?" Sakura looked up to meet his gaze and instantly regretted it. She had promised herself last night that she would not look into Li Syaoran's eyes at the risk of confusing him with 'Amber-eyes'. The similarity in the eye colour was striking but there was no way that he could be the man of her dreams. And she could not let such a silly thing interfere with her job. She looked away.

Oblivious to the internal struggle going on in her mind, Syaoran continued. "Yes, rules. My mother especially, is very particular and strict about these rules. And the first and the most important one is—Discipline."

"Oh."

"Discipline is very important in this house and everyone living here is expected to live by it. So you should remember to—"

"Really? Then I suppose the kids throwing water on their nanny on the first day constitutes 'discipline'?" she retorted.

Syaoran frowned. He obviously didn't like being interrupted and answered back, and Sakura bit her tongue. _'What possessed me to say that? Stupid, stupid!'_

He straightened up and walked towards her till there was about twelve inches separating them. The small distance forced her to look up at him and into his eyes, which were achingly familiar. The same intense amber, the only difference being that instead of love, they held anger. "If you think the kids are not disciplined enough, _you_ should discipline them. That is the purpose of keeping a nanny. It's your job," he said icily. Sakura shivered involuntarily, from his tone and his close proximity. And the shiver was not just due to fear.

"And since you obviously don't know how to go about teaching discipline, I think it would be safe to assume you may not last for long. So I'm not going to stand here and waste my time lecturing you about the rest of the rules," he continued, his tone still icy.

Sakura bit her lip again and looked down. "I'm—um—sorry… I hadn't meant that to sound rude. And… um… I'll try my best to do as you say."

He raised an eyebrow. "We'll see. The decision for letting you stay lies in my mother's hands once she comes back from Paris. But if you're going to interrupt and talk back to her, it's not going to help you. I hope you understand, Miss Kinomoto?"

"Yes, Mr Li." She nodded desperately. "Discipline. I'll keep that in mind."

"You better," he said, before turning around and walking off into the house.

Sakura let out a sigh. This whole thing was turning into one big fiasco. She was now positive that Li Syaoran hated her. This along with the fact that she was confusing him with 'Amber-eyes' and that the kids now looked at her like she was a joke. Packing her bags and running off to Tomoeda seemed a very good alternative now.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"_You WHAT?"_

"I feel miserable, Tomoyo. It's been almost a week since that incident and I'm still the laughing stock of the Li mansion."

"…"

"Tomoyo, I wanna come back to Tomoeda."

"…"

"TOMOYO! Are you even there?"

"_Uh… yeah…"_

"I have never felt so embarrassed before. Yuan keeps smirking at me, Lu keeps patting me on the shoulder in a condescending manner and Dan keeps pulling my leg all the—"

"_Dan? Who's Dan?"_

"He's Li's driver. Anyway, as I was saying, my troubles don't end here. I don't think Lauren Ross likes me either. She was—"

"_Is he cute?"_

"Who? Lauren Ross?"

"_No, silly! I said 'he', as in Dan."_

"Oh. Umm… I guess so—he's got a nice face… so yeah. Coming back to what I was saying, Lauren Ross hates me and so does Li Syaoran—"

"_Does he have brown eyes?"_

"…"

"_Sakura?"_

"…meep…"

"_Sakura? Are you there?"_

"Yeah, I'm here. Where would I go? Heh heh."

"_Well answer my question then—does **he** have brown eyes?"_

"You—you've seen him. Why are you asking me then?"

"_What? When have I seen Dan?"_

"…OH! You meant to ask if _Dan_ has brown eyes! No, no, he doesn't—he's got umm… sea-green eyes… I thought you were asking about…"

"_Yeah? Who did **you** think I was asking about?"_

"Umm… no one. Heh heh. Er… Tomoyo, I really need to go. Some of the other servants want to use the computer—I'll chat with you later. 'kay bye!"

* * *

Sakura covered her eyes with her hand. And here she was thinking that sharing her problems with her friend would help her cope with them better. But damn that Tomoyo—one slip of the tongue on Sakura's part and she would only make things worse. Tomoyo was bound to suspect something now. She'd already met Li Syaoran and if she remembered that he had brown—or more specifically, amber eyes, Sakura would be in so much trouble. Like she didn't have enough troubles already.

"But if I think about it, I haven't had a single dream about 'Amber-eyes' since I came to Hong Kong. Hmm… that's odd," she wondered out aloud. "Maybe even my sub-conscious mind is put-off by the fact that the man of my dreams could be an arrogant jerk like Li Syaoran."

Coping with her mixed feelings for her boss had been lot easier for the past few days. Mainly because of the fact that he was hardly ever home. Her unofficial supervisor was now Lauren Ross, who had become a frequent visitor to the Li mansion—she spent most of her free time there.

"You are essentially a servant here. So behave like a servant." Lauren would tell her repeatedly, to the point that Sakura wanted to tell her to kindly "Shut up—I've got the point a thousand times already" but wisely chose not to. Being a supermodel, Lauren was a busy person and did go out for photo shoots and fashion shows and goodness knows what, but Sakura was thankful for that.

Lauren mostly spent her time in the house pretending to be Mrs. Li Syaoran and ordering the servants around. _'I suppose she's started practicing, considering she **is** going to marry him someday. Maybe she'll boss **him** around too,'_ Sakura thought and giggled. _'Li Syaoran being bossed around… now **that's** something I'd love to see.'_

* * *

"But today's _Sunday_! He can't even spare a Sunday for us?"

Lu sighed at the young Li's outburst. "Master Yuan, you know—"

"Yeah, yeah, I know what you're going to say—he's such a busy man, he has so much work…" Yuan crossed his arms and looked away, pouting.

"But…"

"He hasn't eaten with us for a week now," Lien joined in, her voice soft and unsure. "Does that mean he cares more for his work?"

"Of course not! He…"

"Yeah, he doesn't care for us! He doesn't love us!" Yuan yelled.

"Don't say such things, Master Yuan! He's your father!"

"Then why doesn't he eat with us and play with us and talk to us like all fathers do?"

Lu opened her mouth to say something but before she could say anything, Yuan got up from his chair and ran off in the direction of his room. "I'm not feeling hungry. I won't eat until Daddy comes."

Sakura, who'd been watching this from the sidelines without saying anything, got up and caught his arm.

"Let me go!" he insisted.

"Not again, Yuan! If your father takes you for granted, that's his fault. Why should you punish yourself and starve yourself like this?" Sakura argued.

"Maybe _then_ he'll notice us!" he answered back.

Sakura widened her eyes, shocked by his answer. She let go of him in her shock.

"One day I'm going to do something which _will_ make him notice me," he muttered to himself as he climbed up the stairs leading to his room. Sakura was the only one who had heard him.

* * *

"I'm sick of learning the alphabet. Can't we learn something else?"

"Yuan, if you don't know your alphabet even, how are you going to be able to learn anything new?" Sakura explained patiently.

"Umm… maybe we can play a game? Throw the water!" He started laughing and Lien followed suit.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Okay, this joke's getting old now."

The sound of a car stopping and doors opening and slamming interrupted the kids' laughter.

"Oh, looks like Daddy's home," Lien noted.

"I think he's going to be angry today," Yuan said, and Sakura was taken aback by a mischievous smile on his face. _'This guy's definitely up to something,' _she thought.

Sure enough, a few seconds later—

"YUAN!" came a voice. All three of them turned around to find an extremely pissed-off Li Syaoran standing at the door.

Yuan stood up, still smiling. "Yes Daddy?"

"Last night, did you touch the papers that were kept on my table?" Li asked, still sounding angry.

"Yes Daddy."

"And did you make any changes in those papers?" Syaoran raised his voice a bit and Sakura inwardly winced. She had never seen him talk like that to his kids. He definitely was very, _very_ pissed-off.

Yuan however, looked like he was trying hard to control his laughter. "Yes Daddy."

At this, Syaoran grabbed a bunch of papers from his bag and threw them at Yuan's feet. "Aren't _these_ those papers?"

Sakura bent to take a look at them and had to suppress the urge to giggle. The papers consisted of designs of various costumes, probably designed by Li himself, drawn in black ink.

But apparently, someone had used a red pen to practice the Chinese alphabet all over the designs. And beneath the mess, a name had been signed in Chinese—'Yuan'.

Both the kids started giggling now. "Isn't that funny, Daddy? Ha ha—I didn't like those stupid dresses anyway."

"SHUT UP! Both of you!" Li yelled, and the laughter immediately stopped. "Do you realize the seriousness of what you've done?"

Sakura noticed Lu running into the room to see what the noise was all about. The kids now looked scared, Yuan especially. He had obviously not expected his dad to react this way. Maybe he'd expected him to laugh it off.

"Those designs were to be sold to a reputed American designer company _today_! Because of you, I lost the deal and in the process—millions of dollars!" Li continued. He suddenly sighed and shook his head. "So tell me, what should I do with you, Yuan? What punishment do you deserve?" he asked tiredly.

Yuan looked ready to burst into tears now. And something inside Sakura snapped.

"He deserves no punishment. It's my fault."

All eyes turned to her. Li's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I was the one who instigated him—I gave him the idea to do this," Sakura lied. Yuan widened his eyes and stared at her in shock. Lu gasped and Lien blinked.

"Really?" Li asked, through gritted teeth. "And why would you do such a thing?"

Sakura breathed in deeply. "Because… because these kids were depressed because of you! They wanted your attention. It seemed like playing a prank on you was the only way you would give them any attention!"

Li frowned. "What are you implying, Miss Kinomoto?"

"I'm implying that you care more for your work than your own children! You are more interested in making your clients happy, perfecting your designs and making loads of money than spending some time with your kids."

Li stared at her, but she could see a hint of guilt in his eyes.

Pushing her luck, she continued. "These kids don't even have a mother to look after them. In such a situation, you should try to spend as much time with them as possible so that they don't feel the loss of a mother…"

"That's enough! You've already spoken out of the line of a nanny in the Li household." Sakura bit her lip at the anger in Syaoran's voice. She had pushed her luck too far by bringing in the subject of Chang Fu into this.

Li turned around. "Very well, then. If this is indeed your fault…" He seemed to consider something. "Miss Kinomoto, I want to see you in my work room in ten minutes." Saying that, he walked off.

Once he was out of earshot, Lu exclaimed, "Sakura, what were you _thinking_?"

* * *

Sakura nervously knocked at the door of Li Syaoran's work room.

"Come in," came his voice.

She opened the door slowly and entered to find him staring out of his window.

Without turning to look at her, he said, "There's a white envelope on my table. It's for you."

Sakura spotted it and picked it up.

Li continued. "I'd wanted my mother to take this decision regarding you. But it is obvious that you have no concern for the rules of this house and have no decency to talk to your employer. So I've decided to take this decision myself. I don't want my mother anymore stressed than she already is." He didn't seem angry—there was a flat tone to his voice.

"Umm… what is this, Mr Li?" she asked, looking down at the envelope even though she had a pretty good idea what it contained.

Li looked at her. "Miss Kinomoto…" His expression was unreadable.

She braced herself for what was coming next, but it hit her quite hard nonetheless.

"You're fired."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

'_Well maybe I should be relieved. After all, I had been telling Tomoyo that I wanted to come back.'_ Sakura sighed as she zipped up her bag. The thought still didn't lessen the disappointment that she felt. This was her first job after all. And she had lasted for a grand total of six days. '_That's going to look so **lovely** on my resume.'_

"Umm… have you finished packing?" Dan stood at the door with an apologetic smile on his face. Sakura nodded.

"Oh well. Let's get this stuff downstairs then." He bent down to pick her bag up. "It's a pity you're going so soon. I mean, I didn't even get to show you around Hong Kong…"

She smiled. "That's okay. I didn't come here for sight-seeing anyway. Though…" She frowned. "…I should have noted down the way to the airport."

"Boss said we'll drop you at the airport on the way to the Li fashion house."

"Oh. That's… er—nice of him."

Dan snorted. "Fancy you saying that, considering that he fired you in the first week itself."

"I guess I wasn't 'disciplined' enough for him. He should think of hiring a robotic nanny."

Dan chuckled. "Try saying that to his face before you leave."

* * *

"Is there something you would like to say to your nanny before she leaves?" Lu asked the children, giving them pointed looks.

Li checked his watch while leaning against the car door. "Well be quick then."

Lien took a tentative step forward and Sakura kneeled down. "Um… you're… different from the others… I think I'll miss you…" She smiled, leaning forward and kissed Sakura on the cheek.

Sakura was surprised by the gesture, but before she could react, Lien stepped back.

Yuan however, was pouting and looking in the other direction. "Master Yuan, I think you have something to say too, right?" Lu asked him pointedly.

"Yeah, I'm… sorry… I was mean to you," he said, still avoiding looking at Sakura. "You're okay." He cleared his throat. "AndIalsothinkyouarepretty," he added in a small voice.

Sakura giggled and messed up his hair. "That's really sweet of you, Yuan." She felt happy that at least she had managed to make him like her, even a little bit, though it was too late now.

What took her by surprise was the fact that he blushed to the roots of his hair at her gesture. He sneaked a glance at her and catching her smile, his face went even redder. "Uh—I—umm… bye." With that, he ran back into the house.

Sakura blinked. She stood up and looked at Lu, who looked like she was trying hard to control her laughter. Lien was giggling. Li was looking at her oddly and Dan gave her a thumbs-up.

"You realize Sakura, Master Yuan has never said 'sorry' to anyone in his life," Lu finally said.

"Oh," was all she could think of saying.

A few more seconds of silence went by before, "Miss Kinomoto, where's the resignation letter I gave you yesterday?"

Sakura turned to look at her employer. "Eh?" It took her a moment to figure out what he was asking. "Oh… OH! The letter… wait, I was supposed to preserve it?" She smacked her forehead. "I had no idea! I… it's… umm…wait a minute…" Without waiting for a reaction, she ran into the house and into her former room.

A minute and a half later she appeared at the doorway with two crumpled pieces of paper in her hand. "I'm sorry… I—err—tore it in half and threw it in the dustbin… I didn't like to be reminded that I was fired… I'm really sorry…"

Sakura didn't know what to think of the expression on Li Syaoran's face. He was looking at the crumpled pieces as though they had been dropped from another planet.

He blinked before speaking, "It's alright. I've gotten sick of writing a new letter every time a nanny leaves. So I've got copies with me…" he trailed off, sounding confused.

Sakura noticed that behind Li's back, Dan was clutching his stomach with one hand, covering his mouth with the other and shaking with repressed laughter.

Li Syaoran suddenly straightened up as though he'd just realized why he had asked her about the letter. He cleared his throat. "Okay, yeah, I wanted to tell you to dispose that letter anyway," he said, trying to sound authoritative. "But since you've already done that…"

Sakura widened her eyes. "You mean to say…?"

"You're an odd woman," Syaoran said as he opened the car door. He looked as though he was talking to himself. He sighed and shook his head. "You confuse me." And without warning, he looked at her and smiled. "Do make sure the kids eat every meal properly. Tell them I'll be having dinner with them today. It's a promise. No interruptions."

Sakura stared at him dumbstruck as he got into the car. Her gaze traveled to Dan, who gave her a wink before getting on the driver's seat. She continued to stare as the car drove off.

Lu snapped her out of her trance. "Shall we go in now? I'll tell the other servants to put your bags back into your room."

Sakura stared some more at Lu when finally what the maid had said hit her. "Oh no! I _hate_ unpacking!"

* * *

Sakura was beginning to realize that Dan had hit it right on the mark when he described Li as a moody man. Just yesterday he had basically told her to shut up and get lost. And this morning he had actually _smiled_ at her and allowed her to continue her job.

'_He even took my lecture about spending more time with the kids seriously. Wow,'_ she thought.

"Well he's an impulsive man." Sakura remembered Lu's words. "He likes to take decisions very quickly. I guess, with the kind of work he does, he has to."

Now Sakura didn't know what to think. A few hours back Sakura had easily bracketed Li Syaoran into the 'arrogant jerk' category, who by some coincidence had the same eye colour as 'Amber-eyes'. Now, she was forced to put him in the 'arrogant but can be nice sometime' category. This just confused her feelings for her boss even more.

'_And he says **I** am an odd woman and I confuse **him**!'_

"You know, you think too much." Sakura looked up to see Dan grinning down at her.

"That's because you always turn up when I'm deep in thought," she replied. "Actually, you just turn up everywhere, all the time. One would think you're stalking me or something."

Dan's grin widened. "Hey, I've got loads of free-time with nothing better to do, so why not stalk a pretty girl, hmm?"

She blushed. "Stop flirting if you don't mean it."

He bent down. "Who says I don't mean it?"

"Okay, stop that."

"Fine, if it bothers you," he said, straightening up and running a hand through his hair. "I actually came to congratulate you."

"Oh. On getting my job back?"

"Nope. On successfully managing to confuse Li Syaoran and making him look like an idiot," he chuckled. "Did you see the expression on his face when you showed him that torn-up letter?"

She giggled. "I don't know. I thought he was going to yell at me."

He shook his head. "No, he was _actually_ confused. He doesn't know if you're putting up some kind of act or you really are like this."

Sakura immediately felt offended. "I'm not putting up an act. That's just silly!"

"I know, but the nannies who came before you would never dare speak to the boss like you did yesterday. All of them, or at least the ones I've seen, would be on their best behavior in front of him and try to be extra nice. Most of them were also all flirtatious and… well you know. I guess he's gotten so used to all that—so he finds you an oddity."

"Wait… so you mean to say that he expects me to hit on him?" The thought itself sounded ridiculous to Sakura.

"Maybe he _expects_ you to. I don't think he _wants_ you to. He doesn't like all that. He just fires anyone who goes overboard with that stuff." Dan paused to think. "But you, instead of being all nice, try to lecture him. That took him by surprise and probably hurt his ego. So in the midst of all that confusion and anger, he decided the easiest solution would be to fire you."

"Oh. So today when he saw that the kids like me somewhat he decided to let me stay?"

"Yeah, probably. And what do you mean 'like me somewhat'? Didn't you see Yuan's reaction? I think he has a puppy crush on you."

"Puppy crush?" Sakura giggled.

"Yep."

She smiled. "You're quite good at this."

"At what?"

"At reading people. Figuring out what's going on in their minds."

Dan sighed. "Yeah, it's such a waste that I'm a driver. People have told me I'm quite good at psychoanalysis."

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Psychoanalysis?"

He grinned. "Just some big word I read somewhere. Don't have a clue what it means."

Sakura laughed.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"Would you bring the food already? I'm hungry!" Yuan yelled in the direction of the kitchen.

"Yuan, have some patience. The food will come when it's ready."

He caught Sakura's gaze, blushed, and shut his mouth, turning back to stare at his plate. Lien muffled a giggle.

Standing at the side of the dining table, Sakura resisted the urge to giggle as well. It had been five days since she'd gotten her job back and Yuan was still behaving oddly around her. He still pretended that he didn't like her. But whenever she talked to him or even smiled at him, his face would go red. She found it very cute and ruffled his hair or pat his head, at which he would become even redder. _'Now I know how to make him shut up,'_ Sakura thought amusedly. The young Li was adorable.

'_Pity I can't say the same about the older Li,'_ she idly thought as her gaze flicked to Li Syaoran, who was now busy talking to Meiling. For the past five days he had been coming over to the Li mansion to have lunch with the kids. But half the time he would be engrossed in talking on his mobile or discussing work with his designers. So it hardly made much of a difference if he was at home or in his office. The kids didn't seem to mind though—being able to have lunch with their father kept them happy enough.

All this meant that Li Meiling, being Syaoran's assistant, would come over quite frequently. Sakura liked that—she liked Meiling. She was spunky, witty and fun to talk to. The kids liked her as well. And having known Syaoran for years, Meiling knew how to handle her boss very well.

'_If she weren't his cousin, she'd make him a good wife.'_

And talking about prospective wives, Lauren Ross had come over as well, much to Sakura's dismay. She generally never stayed for lunch, saying that she had photo shoots to attend, but today she had apparently changed her mind. Currently, she was busy talking on her phone about some modeling contract with some agency.

Sakura sighed. No one except the kids seemed to be interested in having lunch.

"Freshness. Simplicity. That should be our theme. Most designer labels are going for the glam quotient these days. We should be different."

Syaoran frowned at his cousin. "I don't see the appeal of that."

Meiling huffed. "Oh come on Syaoran. Why do you think a simple white dress is more eye-pleasing than a flashy gown full of sequins and colourful designs? Because of its simplicity." She paused. "Complexity just makes it confusing."

Syaoran raised an eyebrow. "I see. And exactly how did you come up with such an idea."

Meiling smiled. "Actually, it was because of Sakura."

Sakura jumped at the mention of her name. "Uh…?"

"I love your choice of clothes, Sakura. They're lovely—simple and elegant. They bring out your natural beauty very well."

Sakura blushed at Meiling's words. "Um… thank you. I'm… flattered." She reddened even more as she felt Li Syaoran's gaze on her.

"Where did you buy them?" Meiling asked.

"I didn't buy them. My friend Daidouji Tomoyo designed them for me. She's pretty good at this stuff."

Meiling's eyes widened. "Really? Wow. Your friend? She must be your age then."

Sakura nodded.

"Daidouji?" Syaoran seemed thoughtful. "Is this friend of yours related to Daidouji Sonomi by any chance?"

Sakura nodded eagerly. "Yes, Tomoyo is her daughter."

"Yes, yes… I remember now. I've met her…"

"Syaoran, we've got to have her in our company! She's excellent. Just look at her designs! And she's just… what… nineteen?" Meiling said excitedly. Sakura felt her eyes widen at the suggestion. Tomoyo working for Li Syaoran? That'd be like a dream come true for the amethyst-eyed girl…

"Meiling, she probably works for her mother. I don't think she would want to work for—"

"Are you kidding me? She's been dying for a chance of working with you!" Sakura cut him off. He raised an eyebrow at her outburst and she felt the familiar warmth spreading on her cheeks. She cleared her throat. "Um… what I meant to say was that she'd love to work for you Mr. Li. She doesn't want to be known as Daidouji Sonomi's daughter anymore. She wants to come out of her mother's shadow."

"Ooh excellent!" Meiling exclaimed, clapping her hands. "Then we can call her immediately and ask her if she'd be interested in showing us more of her collections. What do you say, Syaoran?"

Syaoran regarded Sakura closely. Or more specifically, regarded her dress closely. And Sakura tried to will away her blush. _'Get a grip on yourself, Sakura. He's just observing your dress. No big deal. It's just his job.'_

"Yes, simple yet beautiful. Very nice," Syaoran finally said. Sakura's heart skipped a beat.

'_He's talking about the **dress**, you idiot. Not you.' _

"I really liked the dress you wore on your first day. The blue one," he continued.

She gasped. _'Oh my god! He remembers!'_ Quickly composing herself, she said, "Yeah, that's one of my personal favorites too."

"Great! Sakura, you can give us her phone number and—"

"Well, if you ask my opinion…" Lauren Ross, who'd now finished talking on the phone, interrupted Meiling. "I think this Tomoyo's designs are too… well, how should I put it… plain."

Sakura felt a stab of indignation. But fortunately, before she could retort at the statement, Meiling spoke up. "_That_ is the point Miss Ross. That's going to be the theme of our new collection…" She stood up with a faraway expression on her face and Sakura was strongly reminded of Tomoyo. "…Beauty in Simplicity…" She looked at everyone. "So what do you guys have to say?"

"You have a stupid look on your face," came Yuan's voice. Catching Meiling's offended look he quickly added, "I'm _hungry_."

* * *

Sakura felt a hand grab her arm as she led the kids out of the dining hall after lunch. She turned to face a grinning Dan. "Hey!" he said.

Sakura stared at him. "What? I don't have time right now. I've to take the kids—"

"I just want to talk to you for a couple of minutes, okay?" Dan pleaded with his eyes.

She gave in and turned to the kids. "Yuan, Lien, run up to your room. I'll be there soon." They looked a bit hesitant at first, but decided to go when Sakura smiled at them pleadingly.

"We're going on Saturday."

Sakura blinked at Dan. "Huh?"

"Remember our promised _friendly_ date? I said I'd show you around Hong Kong? Yeah, so we're going this Saturday."

"Why Saturday?"

"Because that's when the coast is clear. The boss will be busy the whole day and in the evening, he's going out for dinner with Lauren Ross. I heard them discussing it in the car."

"Oh. So he's taking the kids along with him, I can…"

He shook his head. "Sakura, Li is going on a _romantic_ dinner with Lauren."

Dan's words sunk in and Sakura felt a stab of jealousy. _'Don't be stupid, Sakura. Of course they'd be going out for romantic dinners. She's his fiancée, remember?'_

"Oh, okay." Clearing her mind, she caught up with where Dan was heading. "But wait. That means the kids will be left alone. I can't come with you then. I've got to…"

"Lu has agreed to take care of the kids the whole day."

"But Li will never allow me to go off sight-seeing, leaving the kids alone."

Dan sighed. "Yes, that's my point. Why do you think we're going on Saturday, then?"

Sakura blinked. "Oh… wait. You're saying we're going sight-seeing behind Li's back?"

"Ah, thank God. I was starting to wonder if you'd be able to catch on before Saturday."

"But—but—we'll get into so much trouble…"

"_If _we're caught. Which we won't."

"I just got my job back after being sacked and now you want me to…"

"Sakura, I've been Li's driver for six weeks now. I know his routine by heart. We'll get back before he does."

Sakura opened her mouth to argue some more, but Dan silenced her, placing both hands on her shoulders.

"Sakura, you're managing those little terrors the whole day. You need a break too, right? Besides, this is the only opportunity you're going to get for a long time. Once Li Yelan comes back from Paris, she's going to be breathing down your neck every other minute."

"Oh. When is she coming back?'

"This Sunday, I think. Not sure… anyway, so it's a date?"

Sakura sighed and gave in. "Okay."

Dan grinned. "Ah-hah! Gotcha! So it's a proper _date_, after all. Now you're gonna have to kiss me at the end." He winked.

Sakura smiled and shook her head. "That depends on how much I enjoy it," she said, waving her hand dismissively.

* * *

Sakura pulled at the curtains, blocking out the sunlight. She searched for the light switch and flicked it on. The kids looked snug in their beds. She smiled. "Have a good nap."

"Are you going to sleep too?" Yuan asked.

"No, I don't sleep in the afternoons."

"Then what do you do?"

"Well, I just roam around the house chatting with the other servants…"

"With _Dan_?"

Sakura blinked. "No, Dan's gone to drop your father at his office, remember?"

Yuan pouted. "But if he was here, you'd be talking to him."

"Well…"

"I don't get what you see in him." Yuan was scowling now. "I think he's dumb."

Lien, who had been muffling her laughter till now, burst into a fit of giggles. "Brother is jealous…" she said in a sing-song voice.

"Shut up! I'm not jealous!" Yuan yelled at his sister, though his cheeks were flaming red. "Why would I be jealous of some dumb driver? You're dumb too."

"Brother is jealous…" Lien continued. She turned to look at Sakura. "You know Sakura, Brother has a little cru—mmph…" Her sentence was cut off by a very red Yuan clamping a hand on her mouth. "I have a little _nothing_! Shut up!"

"Now, now, Yuan. It's nothing—Dan's just my friend. Promise," Sakura finally said, smiling cutely at him.

Yuan blinked at her. "What do you mean 'just my friend'?"

"He's not my type," Sakura explained.

Yuan still looked confused.

"Okay, what I mean is—he's my friend. But we're not like… umm… say the hero and heroine in a movie…"

The kids finally seemed to get it and Sakura smiled. _'Wonder what Li Syaoran would say if he hears what education I'm giving the kids.'_

"So who's your 'type'?" Lien asked shyly.

Sakura stared at her. "My type…" She vaguely remembered a pair of amber eyes and subsequently their owner, and blushed.

Lien gasped. "Oh my! You're blushing! This means you do have someone of your 'type'. Who is it?" she asked eagerly.

"No one," Sakura answered a bit too quickly.

"Do you have a crush? Is he from this house? Is it one of the servants?" Lien persisted.

"Enough. Get in your beds and go to sleep."

As Sakura stepped out of the room, she heard Lien's whisper. "Brother, who do you think Sakura has a crush on?"

"I don't know and I don't _care_, okay?"

Giggles followed by a sing-song voice. "Brother is jealous…"

"Shut up!"


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10 **

"_Sakura, I love you, I love you, I LOVE YOU!" _

"Tomoyo…"

"_Can you **believe** this? I'm coming to Hong Kong! I'm going to work for the **LIS**!" _

"Yeah, good for…"

"_All thanks to you, Sakura. You are the **bestest** friend in the world." _

"Heh, thanks Tomo—"

"_Wait, which collection do you think I should bring? The evening wear or the spring collection?" _

"Well, maybe you—"

"_Oh, right now it's summer. I'll bring the summer collection!" _

"Yeah, that's…"

"_But what should I wear myself? I've got to look my fashionable best if I'm to work for Li Syaoran." _

"You can…"

"_Oh, I know! I'll ask mum to design some dresses for me. It'll look silly if I wear my own designs." _

"I don't think…"

"_Thanks for helping me out, Sakura. Without you to give me such great advice, I don't know what I'd do." _

"Uh… thanks. No problem."

* * *

'_Great._' Now, Tomoyo was coming to Hong Kong. Sakura didn't know whether to jump in excitement or smack her forehead. It would be nice to have her best friend in Hong Kong. But knowing Tomoyo, she'd probably make her life even more difficult with her match-making.

'_And when she sees that Li Syaoran has amber eyes, we'll never hear the end of it.'_ Sakura gulped. _'Oh God, what if she asks me to model her collection? I can't do that. Not after what Lauren Ross said on the first day. I can't abandon the kids for modeling. Especially since I've had that dream…' _

She didn't know what to think of the dream she had last night. Or one could label it a nightmare. She didn't remember it very clearly but she vaguely recalled Yuan's voice calling "Mummy!", then an angered woman's shriek accompanied by a gunshot, followed by the pained scream of a man. Whose voice had a very close resemblance to Syaoran's.

Sakura shivered every time the dream came back to her. Was it some kind of a warning or premonition? She remembered the dreams she had about 'amber-eyes'.

'_I don't see **those** dreams ever coming true, so maybe the dream I had last night was simply a result of my scared sub-conscience. After all those stories I've heard about Fu… just my imagination working overtime.' _But that thought did nothing to assuage the feeling of dread within her.

* * *

Sakura watched the kids play in the Li gardens, still absorbed in her conflicted thoughts. She had a bad feeling about the date tomorrow. It was not just about going behind Li's back, but also leaving the kids alone.

'_I can't go. I'll tell Dan that I've changed my mind and I can't come,'_ she decided.

She knew he'd be coming here to talk to her. And sure enough, a few minutes later she felt his presence behind.

'_Say it without looking at him. Or he'll look at you pleadingly until you give in again.'_

"Dan, I've decided we can't go on that date tomorrow_." 'Just say it fast before he says anything.'_ "It's not right. I can't leave the kids alone like that." Sighing, she turned around to face him. And her mouth opened to let out a choked sound.

Li Syaoran stood in front of her with one eyebrow raised.

"I see. So you and Dan are planning to go on a date tomorrow?" he asked, eyes narrowing. "And I suppose you felt it unnecessary to ask me first."

Sakura gulped. "Um… I… err…"

He shook his head and leaned against the tree she was standing under. "Obviously because you felt I wouldn't allow it."

Sakura nodded dumbly.

He sighed and remained silent for awhile. "Who's going to look after the kids in your absence?"

"Uh… Lu said she would…"

"Fine then, I guess you need some time off too. Go wherever you wish to." He glanced at her. "I'll give you permission even though you didn't ask me for it."

She stared at him. "Come again?"

"You heard me, Miss Kinomoto," he said with a half-smile. "Although it's nice to see you concerned about the safety of the kids, you don't have to worry about that. Nothing can happen to them as long as they're within these walls with all the servants here."

Sakura nodded again, feeling a bit silly.

"Another thing, though. It's fine if you wish to pursue romances at your work-place. But I don't want this affecting your job."

"No, no, it's not what you think, Mr Li. Dan and I are just friends. He's taking me out tomorrow to show me around Hong Kong. That's all."

"Really now? Just friends?" His eyes narrowed again. "I've seen the way he behaves around you. He certainly doesn't want it to remain at 'just friends'."

Sakura blinked. "Um… I—"

"Sorry. None of my business."

He quickly turned away to look at the kids playing, a slightly confused look on his face.

There were a few moments of silence before he spoke again. "The real reason why I came here is entirely different."

Sakura straightened up.

He continued. "The kids seem to like you a lot, which is a first with any nanny we've had so far." He paused. "However, we…" he pointed back-and-forth at the space between them, "…haven't got off to the best start."

Sakura pursed her lips and nodded.

"That's not right if you're going to work here for two years." He looked away making a face, trying to find the proper words. "What I'm basically getting at is that we need to try to get along, for the sake of the kids at least."

"Um… and how exactly are we going to do that?"

"You could start off by taming your tongue. It's not going to get you anywhere if you—"

"Excuse me?" Sakura cut him off. "Taming my tongue? What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Syaoran frowned. "What you did just now is exactly what I mean. Do you realize how rude you sound when you cut someone off before they finish what they're saying? And you should watch your tone too. Do I need to remind you who the boss is?"

Sakura spluttered at his little speech. The nerve of that man! "Just because you're the boss doesn't mean you can push me around as you please! I may be a nanny but I've the right to voice my opinion!"

"I'm not pushing you around—you're forcing me to be strict with you. You have absolutely no tact and decency to talk to your superiors."

"Superiors! Just because you have money doesn't make you 'superior'. You know what they say—judge a man by how he treats his employees. You have no resp—"

"Enough!"

Syaoran raised a hand and Sakura held her tongue before she could insult him any further. He closed his eyes and rubbed his temple, trying to calm himself. Sakura realized that she was breathing heavily and tried to cool down as well.

He sighed and finally said, "This is not what I came here for. And this thing is obviously not working. So…" he scratched his chin. "…I'm simply going to tell you what I think about you. It might offend you but you'll listen and _not interrupt me_," he stressed at the last three words. "After that, you'll talk and I'll listen."

"So basically we'll just insult each other in the face and go away feeling happy about it?"

Syaoran couldn't stop his lips from curving upwards. "Yes, that's the basic point. But that will also help us know what we each think about the other, and try to change and adjust in order to get along."

Sakura blinked. "That's… oh. Okay."

"Okay? Then listen. I think you're incorrigible. You've no tact, no decency despite being a woman. You just say what's on your mind without knowing how rude you sound."

"You've already said all that earlier," Sakura pointed out.

"I think I told you not to interrupt me," he scowled and continued. "I personally am unsure whether you'll be a good influence for the kids. I'm keeping you only because the kids seem to like you a lot. Your methods of dealing with the kids are… unconventional. And I don't approve of them. You also instigated Yuan into ruining my designs. Very bad move.

"I have shown tremendous patience in dealing with you. Don't expect the same from my mother. Control your tongue around her."

Sakura realized that he had finished speaking and was now checking her for a reaction. She quickly closed her mouth which had opened during his speech.

"So? Your turn now."

Sakura cleared her throat. "Well… I think you're a very bad father. You ignore the kids for the sake of your work and earning money. And then you scold them for trying to get your attention."

She felt her voice getting shriller and her tone rising as she spoke. "You're an egoist—you think you're always right and hate to be proved wrong. You respect no one, but expect respect from everyone. You call me rude? Do you realize how rude _you_ are? You have no decency either." She paused to see his reaction.

He was staring straight at her, amber eyes narrowed. She felt her cheeks turning the lightest shade of red and she cursed herself mentally. _'And despite all that I **still** have a crush on you. Damn it!' _

She cleared her thoughts and finally added, "Basically I think you're a selfish, arrogant jerk."

They stared at each other for a few moments.

And without warning, Syaoran burst into laughter.

Sakura blinked. Then her eyes widened as she saw Syaoran clutching his stomach with one hand and using the tree as a support with the other, still doubled up with laughter.

"Um… I don't think I said anything particularly funny…" Sakura said unsurely. This was not the reaction she was expecting from him.

Syaoran straightened up after finally controlling his laughter. He was still smiling as he said, "Sorry. It's just that in the twenty three years of my life, no one's ever called me a 'selfish, arrogant jerk' to my face."

"So you find _that_ funny?" she asked incredulously.

Syaoran chuckled. "Well, of all people, it was my _nanny_ who said it."

Sakura still didn't find it very funny but couldn't help giggling herself. "So… we can get along if we try."

"Yeah, I'll try not to be a selfish, arrogant jerk."

"And I'll try not to be incorrigible and develop some tact and decency."

"Hmm… good…" Syaoran sighed, and resumed his position of leaning against the tree observing the kids, who now seemed to be having some sort of a fight. "Miss Kinomoto… I find it silly calling you that all the time. I generally address my employees by their first names. You wouldn't have a problem with me calling you Sakura?"

She felt her cheeks getting warm, hearing him say her first name. In her dreams, she had heard the same voice saying her name in a wholly different manner…

"Miss Kinomoto?"

Sakura snapped out of her thoughts. "Huh?"

"Fine. If it bothers you I won't—"

"No, no, no. I'm fine with it. You can call me Sakura," she quickly said, giving him her best smile. "So does this mean I can call you Syaoran?" she asked cheerfully.

There were a few moments of silence. She heard the birds chirping above her.

Syaoran slowly raised an eyebrow at her.

Sakura mentally slapped herself. _'Stupid, stupid! Of course you can't call him Syaoran, you silly girl. He's your **boss**! He can call his subordinates by their first names, but not the other way round. You're such an **idiot**, Sakura!'_

"Hmm… okay. But not in front of the others," he finally said.

Sakura stared at her boss in shock. Even he looked surprised at his own answer. "Well, I…"

"Daddy!" came a young girl's voice.

They both turned to find a teary-eyed Lien running towards them, with Yuan following her. Sakura didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed that the kids had interrupted them.

"Daddy, Yuan broke Barbie's arm!" Lien cried, clutching her doll in one hand and wiping her tears with the other.

"Yuan, why did you do that?" Syaoran asked sternly.

"It was an accident. I swear."

It was obvious that he was lying. He was trying his best to hide the smirk forming on his lips and he was looking at Lien in a predatory way, as though he'd just realized how fun and exciting it was to trouble your own sister. He looked like his birthday had come early.

Sakura sighed. Poor, poor Lien. She had no idea what she was in for with a brother like Yuan.

* * *

"I'm so tired, Dan."

"Excuse me? _You _are tired? I'm the one who's been carrying your shopping bags from one marketplace to another."

Sakura gave him an apologetic grin. "Sorry. It's just that there's so much to buy in Hong Kong."

Dan grumbled. "I thought we'd come for sightseeing. What's with women and shopping anyway?"

"I blame it on my best friend, Tomoyo. She's the one who got me addicted to shopping."

"Was she the one who taught you to bargain like that?"

Sakura blushed. "Well… I'm not exactly rolling in money, you know. What's wrong with trying to get something at a cheaper price?"

"Nothing, except that it makes you look like a fisherwoman," Dan teased.

"_What_?"

"A pretty fisherwoman."

"You…"

"Okay, okay. Listen, I'm starving. Let's get something to eat, okay? Then we'll go back home."

Sakura frowned. "So soon? But I still haven't seen Victoria Peak."

"_Soon_? Its eight thirty P.M. and really late, and we could have gone to Victoria Peak earlier if you hadn't spent three bloody hours in Stanley market."

"But…"

"And another three painfully boring hours at the Ladies market."

"I was…"

"And let's not forget the two hours you dragged me around the Jade market…"

"Fine, I get it. And I said I'm sorry," Sakura sighed. "Let's get something to eat then."

"Good. There's a really nice seafood restaurant a few blocks away. It's close to the Li mansion as well, so we can get back as soon as we finish eating."

"Seafood? I love seafood!"

"Yeah, I know."

Sakura frowned. "How do you know? I never told you that."

"Well, I'm quite good at reading people, like you said earlier."

"Really? You think you know me that well?" she challenged him. "Then what's my favorite colour?"

"Hm… brown."

Sakura gasped. "How…?"

"Lucky guess," he smirked.

"Fine. What's my favorite flower?"

"Cherry blossoms."

"Just because my name means 'cherry blossom' doesn't mean it's my favorite kind of flower."

"But it is, right?" he asked.

"…"

He chuckled. "You're an open book, Sakura."

'_Am I really that easy to read?'_ Sakura froze. What if Dan knew about her crush on Li Syaoran? She didn't want to think about it—that would be so embarrassing!

"Uh… let's go to this restaurant."

* * *

"Well, I knew you like seafood 'coz I overheard you telling Lu. And I guessed your favorite colour was brown 'coz there's a lot of brown in the dresses you wear. The cherry blossom thing was just an off-hand guess," Dan explained. "Are you satisfied now?"

Sitting in 'Sampan Seafood Restaurant', Sakura regarded Dan. "What are you, Sherlock Holmes or something?"

"Yeah, I like reading Sherlock Holmes," he grinned.

Sakura suddenly went still. Then just as suddenly, she turned from one side to another as though looking for someone.

Dan frowned. "What is it?"

"Li Syaoran is here. With Lauren Ross."

"Eh? Where?" He turned to look around as well.

"I don't know. That's why I'm looking for him," she said, still searching among the people who were seated at the restaurant.

"Li's not here, Sakura. What's with you?"

"Well, then he's going to be here soon."

"How do you know that?"

"I just _do_, okay?"

Dan looked at her oddly. "Sakura, you're being paranoid. You're just afraid of getting caught so you're…"

"No I'm not. He already knows about our 'date'."

Dan stared at her. "He knows? How?"

She bit her lip. "I… um… told him by mistake. But… he's given us permission. So it's okay."

He blinked. "Really? Wow… and… you didn't tell me this earlier because…?"

"I kinda forgot…" she said, giving him a sheepish smile.

"Oh my God, Sakura! You're _good_!" Dan suddenly exclaimed.

"Eh? What do you mean…?" she trailed off as she realized that Dan was staring at something behind her. She turned around and her jaw dropped.

A beautiful, blonde woman walked in through the door of the restaurant, followed by a brown-haired young man. Lauren Ross and Li Syaoran.

"What the…? He's supposed to be dining with her at the 'Hutong'. That's where he always goes," Dan said, still staring at the couple. "How did you know they were gonna come _here_, Sakura?"

"Um… female intuition, I guess."

"Well, your female intuition rocks. And we need to get out of here. Eating at the same restaurant as your boss is a bad idea." Dan slowly got up from his seat and motioned to Sakura.

Silently agreeing with him, she got up as well.

"Do my eyes deceive me? Is it really you, Mr Li?"

Sakura and Dan both jumped at the booming voice that came from the other end of the restaurant. Everyone's eyes turned to the source of the voice. It was a short, plump, middle-aged man, who was now rushing towards the famous couple.

"Mr Li! And Miss Ross! It's such an honour to have you at my humble restaurant. Please come in." The manager eagerly shook hands with Li and kissed the back of Lauren's hand. "Waiter, make arrangements to give them the two best seats in the restaurant immediately."

Every pair of eyes in the restaurant was now trained at the new celebrity customers.

"Good, this is our chance," Dan whispered to Sakura, grabbing her arm. "Let's get out of here befo—ooff" He banged straight into the waiter who had been summoned by the manager.

His grip on Sakura's arm slipped awkwardly, which caused her to lose her balance. Which caused her to scream as she fell splat on the floor. Which caused every pair of eyes in the restaurant to now look at _them_.

"What the hell is going on here?" the manager's voice boomed, and Sakura winced.

"It's alright. That's my driver and my nanny," answered a voice. Sakura recognized it as Syaoran's, and she felt her face go red.

"On a date, I suppose?" Lauren Ross spoke up. "How sweet."

Dan helped Sakura up as Li Syaoran turned to the manager. "Make arrangements for a table for four." He threw a glance at them, with a slight smirk. "Let's make this a double date, shall we?"


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

'_What is he playing at?'_

Sakura fiddled with her napkin and observed her boss who was sitting across the table. He looked pretty pleased with himself for some reason. _'That little…'_

Her eyes traveled to said boss's fiancée. She had looked furious when Li had suggested the 'double date'. She looked even more furious now as they all sat together at a table right at the centre of the restaurant, with all heads frequently turning towards them.

Dan had a very odd expression on his face. If the situation wasn't so serious, Sakura would have laughed at the look on his face.

She herself didn't know what to make of this. Why in the world would Li Syaoran spoil his evening with Lauren Ross by inviting his driver and nanny? This was just weird.

Sakura could only derive one conclusion from all of this. That Li Syaoran was a sadistic, sadistic man.

"I would recommend the Szechwan Shrimp, Mr. Li. You should definitely try that. Or today's specialty—the Honey Walnut Shrimp," the manager, standing beside Syaoran, said eagerly.

Li was the only one perusing the menu. Lauren was scowling, or trying her best to scowl without ruining her appearance, and Dan had his head propped up on one hand, staring at the ceiling as though hoping this would end as quickly as possible. Sakura simply stared at the menu distractedly, not reading anything written on it. The tension in the air was thick.

"What will you people have?" Li asked them calmly, as though nothing was wrong. Sakura noticed that his lips were ever so slightly curved upwards. Her hold on the menu card tightened. She so badly wanted to shake that man by his shoulders.

"I'll umm… have the fish fillet and tofu," Dan said, quickly going through the menu.

"Lauren?"

She looked at Syaoran, still with a scowl on her face. Syaoran raised an eyebrow at her questioningly and her face suddenly broke into a fake smile. "I'll have what you'll have, darling."

"Alright, we'll both have the Szechwan shrimp with rice…" Li said to the manager, "…and Sakura?"

Sakura jumped, hearing her name being called. She caught Lauren's narrowed gaze, which seemed to be saying 'Oh, so on first name basis, are we?'

"Uh… the salmon sushi with wasabi, I guess," she replied.

Li nodded, turning to the manager. "Fine, that will be all."

"Excellent choices. I'll get them ready as soon as possible. The wontons should be coming in a minute—excellent appetizers they are, sir." Bowing to all four, the manager left the table and walked off towards the restaurant kitchens.

And Sakura mentally cursed. _'Now what?'_

This left the four of them alone together. Dan was still looking at the ceiling, Lauren Ross was still scowling, and Sakura, having the menu card taken away, was now staring at a spot on the table cloth. Syaoran was still sitting comfortably as if nothing was wrong. _'Damn that man.'_

Sakura fidgeted with the end of the table cloth. '_Someone please say something before this awkward tension drives me crazy.'_

As though reading her thoughts, Li suddenly spoke. "So how was your little sight-seeing around Hong Kong?"

"Huh?" Dan looked genuinely surprised at such a question coming from his boss. "It was… splendid… yeah. Right, Sakura?"

"Yeah…"

Lauren Ross dropped her scowl and observed them interestedly. "And how long have you two been dating?"

Sakura's eyes widened. "No, we aren't dating…" For some reason she wanted to make this very clear in front of her boss. "This isn't a date."

Lauren raised an eyebrow at her and Dan blinked. "It isn't?" he asked frowning. "I thought you agreed to call it a date."

Sakura bit her lip. This was not the conversation she wanted to have with Dan in front of her boss and his fiancée. Silence was not an option since all three pairs of eyes were now looking at her, waiting for her reply.

"Um… yeah. A friendly date, that's all."

Dan raised both eyebrows and stared at her. "Wait. So this means that I got dragged along for eight hours of shopping and getting painfully bored, and I don't even get a proper date in the end?"

"No, that's not what I…" Sakura felt a bit guilty. It was true—Dan needn't have come along with her during her shopping escapades. But he did. And she in return was rejecting him in front of Syaoran and Lauren.

Lauren looked amused. "So you have been shopping all day? How typical. I bet you couldn't resist the prices at the open air markets," she said. "But I avoid them. They're just too middle class, if you ask me."

'_Middle class?'_ Sakura gritted her teeth. _'Just because you're a model and have got a good catch for a future husband, it doesn't put you in a higher class, you…'_ She kept silent and contented herself with mentally hurling insults towards Lauren Ross.

"Well, I don't understand what's going on between the two of you," Lauren continued. "But you know what they say—if a guy accompanies a girl for shopping, he's either her boyfriend or he's gay."

"Hey! I'm not gay!" Dan exclaimed, offended.

Sakura thought of a few more choices of insults for Lauren.

"Leave it, Lauren. I think they'd rather sort this out on their own," Syaoran said amusedly.

Sakura thought of a few creative insults for her infuriating boss as well.

Lauren turned towards her fiancé, her eyes shooting daggers at him, as though saying 'This whole thing was your idea in the first place', and immediately turned her head in the other direction. Sakura couldn't stop the upward curving of her lips. Well at least she and Lauren agreed on something.

She was very thankful when a few seconds later a waiter brought wontons. At least now they'd be occupied with eating and not be forced to make conversation.

* * *

Sakura came to a second conclusion about Li Syaoran that evening—he was not only sadistic, he was masochistic as well.

How else would you explain this? They had finished their starters in silence, watched the waiter clear the table in silence, and were now waiting for their dinner in silence. Dan stifled a yawn, Lauren was still scowling, and now even Li looked bored. Really, why would anyone inflict this upon oneself?

So yeah, sadistic and masochistic it is.

"If you'll excuse me," Lauren suddenly stood up. "I need to freshen up a bit. This 'double date' is already tiring me out." Throwing a glare at Li, she walked off in the direction of the ladies' restroom.

Sakura was tempted to follow her, but decided that sitting here would be better than enduring the patronizing glances of Lauren.

It all seemed to be leading to further doom.

A few seconds later a waiter came up to their table. "Mr. Daniel Blake?"

Dan woke up from his stupor. "Yeah, that's me."

"There's a call for you."

"Huh? Who knows I'm here?"

The waiter cleared his throat. "It is a lady from some agency you borrowed money from. She says today was your last day to repay the loan."

"Bloody blood-sucking pests! They hound you everywhere, don't they?" he muttered, running a hand through his hair. He grinned embarrassedly at Li who was now looking at him with narrowed eyes.

"What is all this, Dan?"

"Nothing, Boss. Just needed some money sometime back. No big deal—I'll just tell them to extend the deadline a bit." He got up and turned to the waiter. "Anyway, how did you know I'm Daniel Blake?"

"You're the only black-haired gaijin in this restaurant."

Dan made a face. "Black-haired gaijin? Is that how they described me?" He muttered something under his breath and walked off towards the reception.

Sakura stared at his retreating form in panic. _'Dan! Don't leave me here alone with this…'_ She glanced at her boss, who was still looking at Dan. _'This is disaster. Catastrophe. Dooms Day!'_ she thought in panic. She had half a mind to follow Dan.

She thought how stupid she would look standing mute beside Dan as he argued over the phone.

"So…"

Sakura felt alarm bells going off in her head. She turned to face her boss with a big fake smile on her face. "Yeah?"

Syaoran looked at her oddly. "Why are you smiling like that?"

'_He's trying to goad you into doing something stupid. As a revenge for the mean things you said about him yesterday. He's trying to make a fool out of you, Sakura. Don't fall in his trap.'_

"Well, people smile when they're happy…"

"Hmm… happy? You look scary."

'_I'll show you my scary face, you little…'_

She giggled nervously. "I didn't know you had a sense of humor, Mr. Li."

'_I'll be damned if I call you Syaoran, you…'_

He looked even more amused. "That wasn't meant to be a joke." He leaned forward. "You're quite the nervous wreck, aren't you?"

She felt a vein pop in her head. Well, courtesy be damned. "Nervous wreck?" she hissed at him. "This is all your fault in the first place. Double date? Which celebrity has a double date with his fiancée, and his driver and nanny?" She felt all her pent-up frustration coming out to lash out at Syaoran. Trying hard to keep her voice down, she continued. "If you don't like to hear negative things about yourself, you shouldn't have asked me to say anything in the first place. I had no idea you would stoop so low to take revenge. You are absolutely—" Her tirade came to an abrupt halt when she felt his hand reach across the table to lay on hers.

She gasped and widened her eyes. He was still looking at her with amusement in his eyes.

"Calm down, Sakura. This has nothing to do with you."

"Eh?" was all she could manage.

"I didn't come here to take… revenge… on you," he said with a half-smile. "I generally go to the 'Hutong' and the paparazzi know that. Today I felt like having sea-food and some privacy. It is very irritating when you're enjoying your food and suddenly there are camera shutters going off all around you. So I came here. It was just a coincidence that you two did as well."

His words barely registered in her mind. Her attention was fully on his warm hand that was almost casually laid on hers, sending pleasant shivers down her spine.

"As for the double date that I suggested—I thought it would be fun. I guess I was wrong," he sighed.

'_Fun? Is he absolutely daft? And why is he still holding my hand?'_

"Fun? Are you absolutely daft? And why are you still holding my hand?"

'_Oh my God. Did I say that out loud?'_

He blinked at her. Then he blinked at his hand, looking at it as though he'd just realized what he was doing. Almost immediately he jerked his hand back.

"Uh… sorry. I didn't realize…" His cheeks were slightly pink.

"Mr. Li!" The manager's booming voice made both of them jump. Behind him were two waiters with huge trays in their hands. "Your order is ready. Where are your other two companions?"

"They'll be back in a moment."

Sakura went back to fiddling with the tablecloth. Just like yesterday, she didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed for being interrupted.

* * *

"Thank God it's over," Dan sighed, and looked heavenward. "That was torture, I tell you, torture."

Sakura giggled, remembering the expression on Dan's face when Syaoran had suggested the double date.

"Really? You seemed to be enjoying yourself," she teased.

"Are you kidding me? I was beginning to get homicidal urges… and these bags are really, really heavy, you know."

Sakura glanced at the numerous shopping bags in Dan's hand. "Well you wouldn't even let me carry a few of them…"

"Hey! Let no one say that chivalry is nonexistent in today's men."

She smiled at him. They walked in silence for some time. She had to get back home as soon as possible.

Syaoran had gone to drop Lauren and it would probably be quite late when he'd come back. Sakura felt her gut twist at the thought. After the restaurant manager had interrupted their 'moment' or whatever one would call it, Lauren and Dan had soon come back. The rest of the dinner had gone without much incident—except for the fact that Sakura's cheeks were red throughout and Dan kept throwing suspicious glances at her.

"So I'm not gonna get a kiss at the end of this, eh?"

Sakura sighed. "Dan, I told you…"

"That this is just a 'friendly' date, blah, blah, blah. Yeah, I know."

"Dan, I'm sorry," she bit her lip, feeling extremely guilty. "It's just that since we're working together and stuff, it would be better if we just remain friends…"

Dan snorted. "Stop making excuses, Sakura. I know what's going on. You've got the hots for Li, haven't you?"

She froze and felt her face redden. '_Damn! He knew!'_

He grinned at the expression on her face. "You think I wouldn't notice? Man, even Lauren suspects it. Don't you see the way she behaves towards you? You're so obvious. If Li wasn't such a clueless guy, he would have guessed it too. He probably still thinks you hate him or something."

'_Am I that obvious? Yeah, probably.'_ She shook her head in resignation.

"You know, I thought you'd be the first nanny who wasn't a Li Syaoran fan girl. Guess I was wrong," he said teasingly.

Sakura spluttered at that statement. "I'm NOT his 'fan girl'! He drives me nuts! I myself have no idea why I have a crush on that arrogant, irritating, infuriating…"

"Whoa! Don't get all angsty on me!"

With a 'humph!', Sakura turned away, folding her arms.

"Wow, you're head-over-heels for him and you're not ready to even accept it," he chuckled.

"What makes you say—"

"It's okay. I don't blame you. I know I'm dashing and all, but I'm no match for _the_ Li Syaoran." He sighed. "You aim quite high, don't you? But if, you know, you change your mind and decide to aim lower… well, you know where to find me…" He smiled at her.

She smiled back. "Dan, you're a nice guy. I'm sure you'll find a lovely girl who'll be head-over-heels for _you_."

He smirked. "Hah! That I will. In my previous job, my colleagues used to call me the 'connoisseur of women'."

"Connoisseur of women? Really?" she asked skeptically.

"Yep. As evidence, I pursued you, didn't I?" Dan nodded and winked. "And you know what? I think you have a pretty good chance with Li."

Sakura blinked. "What?"

"Well he doesn't seem to like his fiancée much, anyway."

"Lauren Ross? Why?"

"This whole engagement's arranged by Li Yelan—that's what I heard," he explained.

"Arranged?"

"Yeah, didn't you know? Even the marriage between Fu and Li was arranged. From the rumors that have been floating around, Li was dating some girl in his high school. Li Yelan didn't approve of that relationship as the girl was from a middle class family. Before you know it, she got him hitched to the teen sensation of that period—Chang Fu."

"That's horrible!" Sakura exclaimed. "You can't force someone to marry."

Dan shrugged. "Yelan was more concerned about her family's reputation. The Lis are descendants of a royal family and they have some archaic tradition of marrying their kids off at eighteen."

"But still… forcing someone to marry…"

"Yelan obviously didn't approve of the girl from Li's high school that he had chosen. So she decided to find someone more 'appropriate' herself, I guess. Fu of course, probably jumped at the opportunity of marrying the most wanted bachelor in Asia."

"And Li? He just went along with all that?"

Dan smirked. "For all the arrogance and pride that Li likes to display, he doesn't have a spine. He's his mother's puppet. See, he's going along with this again, with Lauren Ross."

Sakura remained silent. Yelan didn't sound like someone she'd like much, once she came back from Paris.

"He seems to be resisting a bit though. I'm guessing that's what this whole double date thing was about," Dan continued.

"Huh?"

"This was just an obligatory dinner with his fiancée, for him. From what I've seen of the two interacting, he doesn't like her company much. She's the more persuasive one. I suppose he just wanted to annoy her a bit."

"Oh."

Dan grinned. "What? You thought he wanted that double date 'coz he's as smitten by you as you're with him and he was desperately looking for some excuse to spend time with you?"

Sakura swatted his arm playfully. "Shut up!"

In the distance, she spotted the gates of the Li mansion. She smiled and wondered what the kids were doing. _'Lu must have put them to sleep by now.'_

"You know, seeing your crush on Li, I knew I had no chance," Dan started saying. "I wasn't going to push you for this date but Lu encouraged me to ask you out, saying that she'd take care of the kids. She's really sweet that way…"

It hit Sakura suddenly. She turned to Dan, panicking. "Dan, the kids—they're in trouble!"

"Huh? Wha…? How do you…?" Before he could complete his question, she had dashed off towards the mansion.

* * *

"Where are the kids, Lu?" Dan asked furiously.

Lu turned her panicked eyes on him. "I-I don't know… I swear… this is not my fault…"

Wei frowned at her. "Not your fault? You were the one who let that man in, saying that you knew him."

"Wang couldn't have taken the kids! Impossible! I know him—he would never…"

"Listen, Lu," Dan said, gritting his teeth. "This Wang person is gone. And so are the kids. What does that add up to?"

"But…"

"You know Li is going to be super pissed at you for this…"

Sakura stared at Lu in shock. _'Lu couldn't have…' _She remembered Dan's words from earlier. "_…but Lu encouraged me to ask you out, saying that she'd take care of the kids…_"

'_Why Lu? You were always so nice to me. And the kids loved you so much.'_ Sakura's mind reeled. _'And now they're gone. Kidnapped.'_

The other servants were talking rapidly amongst themselves and nothing was registering in Sakura's mind.

"Letting a kidnapper in the house…" one of the servants started saying.

"Wang is not a kidnapper! He's my husband!" Lu exclaimed in anger.

There was silence.

It was during the silence that Sakura felt her mind pull her somewhere._ 'I know!'_

"I know!" she exclaimed. "I know where the kids are!"

All eyes turned to her. Without waiting for a response, she ran out of the house.

* * *

The streets of Hong Kong were numerous and confusing, but somehow Sakura knew the way. She ran as fast as she could, letting her intuition guide her.

She came to a halt near an alleyway and willed her heartbeat to slow down. _'This is it.'_

It was dark and no one was around, but disregarding her common sense, she stepped forward. The click of a gun being loaded and the sharp press of cold metal on her neck made her gasp.

"Listen, lady. I don't know how you found me but I suggest you turn around and walk away quietly," a voice spoke near her ear.

Sakura shuddered. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the dim alleyway and focused on two prone forms lying on the ground. Lien and Yuan—unconscious.

'_Is this what Chang Fu wants? That demented woman! No mother in her right mind would do this!'_ Sakura felt her fear diminishing and anger rising. _'I can't leave the kids with that mad woman!'_

She screamed, turning around, and grabbed the arm holding the gun. "I won't let you take the kids, you vile—"

"Stupid bitch!" He freed his arm and pushed her against the wall, spitting on the ground. "Fine. I'm just going to have to kill you then."

He aimed the gun at her head.

Sakura eyed the gun in the dim light with panic. "No! I don't want to die!" Impulsively, she threw herself against him, trying to grab the gun. The man swore and she knew she had no chance.

The sound of a gun going off; a searing pain in her head; and Sakura saw black.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

She opened her eyes to see white.

"Oh, so you're finally awake."

Sakura winced. Her head ached even as her eyes slowly opened.

"_Uh_…" she said, both in pain and confusion. She tried to move her limbs but they felt like lead. Her mind felt hazy and she could vaguely make out an oxygen mask covering the lower part of her face.

Feeling a hand on her left arm, she inclined her head slightly. An unfamiliar face of a woman smiled down at her.

"Do I know you?" Sakura tried to ask. All that came out was a choked sound. She could barely even move her lips.

"Don't stress yourself too much. You've been out for four days and living on IV drips," the woman said, her voice sounding concerned. "Oh, by the way, you're in the HK Central Hospital and I'm your nurse Tseng Na."

Sakura blinked. _'Hospital…?' _

The haze lifted slowly and the events from Saturday night played in her mind. Immediately, a thousand questions sprang up.

"Do you realize how lucky you are? The bullet grazed your skull slightly. A couple of centimeters and you'd be in the mortuary right now," the nurse continued saying, even as she scribbled something on a notepad. "But it's made you quite famous, you know. You're all over the papers—'Brave nanny rescues Li twins' and stuff like that. The whole of Hong Kong has been praying for your recovery." She turned around, keeping her notepad down, and started to work on something Sakura couldn't see.

"Kids…" Sakura finally managed to say, hoping she was audible enough.

The nurse looked up. "The kids? Oh, they're fine." She smiled. "Fine and with their father; and the kidnapper's in police custody."

Relief washed through her and she started feeling curious about what had happened after she lost consciousness.

"Your family and friends have been worried sick."

Sakura's eyes widened as she heard that. _'My family? They're here?_'

"Your brother, especially. Your father had to restrain him from doing something… drastic." The nurse chuckled.

_'Oh God. Touya! He must have flipped after hearing this.'_

"Your best friend—Tomoyo, I think her name is. She left just half an hour back."

_'Oh, so Tomoyo's here as well. She came to Hong Kong early.'_

"I think you should get some rest now. Your muscles will be taking some time to get back into motion, and your body needs time to adjust when it's off the IV. I think you should be out of here in another couple of days."

* * *

Sakura leaned against the pillow that was propped up against the wall adjacent to her hospital bed, watching her best friend sit on a chair beside her bed with a plate on her lap.

"I've yet to meet Li Syaoran and I can't wait. I've only met Meiling, and she's the coolest person in the world! She loved all of my designs, you know. Said I have raw talent," Tomoyo spoke as she peeled an apple.

Sakura nodded dumbly, not really paying attention, lost in her own thoughts about what had happened in the past couple of days she had spent in the hospital in a conscious state. Touya had rushed in and insisted on taking her back to Tomoeda immediately. It had taken a lot of coercing on Fujitaka's part and defiance on her own part to convince him otherwise. Tomoyo, on the other hand, had been her concerned self and spent most of her time with Sakura in the hospital room.

"…maybe it was a good thing I came earlier than I was supposed to. That gives me more time to discuss the designs with Meiling…"

Of course the downside in having Tomoyo as a companion was that you had to put up with her non-stop rambling about designs and clothes the whole time.

"…she said that they'll be displaying an all new collection next month. I was shocked to hear it. I mean, one month is too little time. I have no idea what the other designers will be displaying. I have to be in tune with all that and modify my designs accordingly…"

But Tomoyo's rambling was not what bothered her. What hurt her was the fact that no one from the Li mansion had cared to visit her or even contact her. Not the kids, nor Li Syaoran, none of the servants, not even Dan. _'Well the kids are under Li's control. So can't blame them. But the others…'_

"…and then the designs have to be stitched, the models have to be contacted, then the press coverage. And here, I haven't even met my boss…"

Sakura shook her head to clear her thoughts. Li was paying the hospital bills. What more could she expect from him? After all, he was just her boss and he had no such obligations. _'Except that the reason I'm here in the first place is because I got shot trying to save his kids.'_

"…I'm really eager to know what he'd say after seeing my designs… oh God! What if he hates them…?"

And Dan? Was he angry at her rejection? Why hadn't he come? She might not have shown any romantic interest in him, but she still valued his friendship.

"…do you think he'll hate them, Sakura? Sakura…? Are you even listening to me? Sakuraaaaa!"

Sakura jerked out of her thoughts. "Huh?"

Tomoyo huffed. "Oh forget it." She held an apple piece in front of Sakura. "Here, have this."

Sakura hesitantly took it from Tomoyo's hand and bit a small piece off, chewing it slowly.

Tomoyo rolled her eyes. "You're going to take the whole day to eat this if you continue that—"

She was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in," she said.

The door opened to reveal Dan, a bunch of flowers in his hand and an apologetic grin on his face.

Sakura's eyes widened and she sat up straight. "Dan?"

He gently closed the door and walked in. "Hey, Sakura." He smiled down at her and handed her the flowers.

"Thanks," she said, smiling back. "So…" Her demeanor changed immediately as she realized that she was supposed to be angry at him. "Wait. Are these flowers supposed to be some kind of apology for ignoring me?"

He grinned. "Well, if you want to take it like that…"

She swatted him with the flowers, scowling. "Then you can have them back."

"Okay, I'll say it. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Will you forgive me for not visiting you earlier?"

"No. Not enough of an apology."

"What? You want me to grovel at your feet now?" he said, trying to frown through his grin.

"Ahem," Tomoyo cleared her throat, causing the pair to turn and look at her. She was looking at them with both eyebrows raised and a barely there smirk.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't realize there was… another person in the room," Dan said.

Tomoyo's smirk widened. "Obviously."

"Umm… Tomoyo, this is Dan. He's Li's driver. And Dan, this is Tomoyo, my best friend," Sakura quickly spoke up.

Tomoyo extended her hand towards him. "Hello, Dan. Finally I get to meet you. Sakura talks about you all the time."

He shook her hand, looking surprised. "She does?"

Sakura blinked. "I do?"

She smiled. "Of course." She placed the plate on the bedside table and got up. "Now that you're here, Dan, I think I'll leave. You can give Sakura company. I have to meet Meiling in the afternoon."

"You're going?" Sakura asked, surprised.

Tomoyo gave her one of her all knowing smiles and Sakura knew something was up.

"I don't think you'll miss me much anyway. Continue with your conversation." She picked up her bag and walked towards the door. "Bye, Sakura. Bye, Dan. See you later."

She walked out, shutting the door behind her. Dan turned to Sakura. "Well that was weird."

Sakura sighed. "That's Tomoyo. She's weird."

He chuckled. "So…"

"So, yeah, you were saying something about groveling at my feet."

Dan held his hands up in mock surrender. "Okay, I can explain. Ever since the kidnapping attempt, mother and son have gone psycho. I just couldn't—"

"Mother and son?" Sakura interrupted.

"I was referring to Yelan and Syaoran."

"Oh dear."

Li Yelan. She was supposed to come last Sunday. Sakura had completely forgotten about her.

"What?" he asked.

"Li Yelan. I had this big speech about duties and responsibilities memorized to impress her. And the day she arrives, I end up in a hospital…"

"…trying to save her grandkids. Hey, that's going to impress her big time. Don't you worry. Anyway, how are you feeling now?"

"Better."

He grinned. "That was some stunt you pulled off."

"I… what _did_ happen after I got shot?"

"Well, Wei and I followed you, but we lost you too soon. It was really dark and you were running like someone possessed."

Sakura blushed. "Umm… I don't know what came over me…"

"Then we heard you scream and we ran in that direction. I got panicked when I heard that gunshot," he continued animatedly. "We saw this figure running out of an alleyway—that was the kidnapper. Wei ran up to him and gave him a solid punch in his solar plexus." Dan punched the air, trying to demonstrate. "That old bloke is way stronger than he looks—the thug fell to the ground clutching his stomach. Then we found you three lying on the ground. Your head was oozing blood and we almost thought you were… you know. We got you to the hospital immediately."

Sakura listened wide-eyed. "Wow."

"Yeah—wow. What were you thinking running off like that?"

"I… don't know…"

"And how did you know where the kids were?"

"Umm… female intuition…?"

"Right. First the restaurant with Li and Lauren. Now this. What are you—psychic or something?"

Sakura bit her lip. "Well, I do get these strange dreams sometimes…"

"Strange dreams?" Dan looked curious.

"The thing is they always feature someone from the Li family."

"Okaaay…" Dan smirked. "So you get dreams about Li Syaoran too, I suppose?"

"Yeah, I…" Sakura began, but caught the look on Dan's face. "No, not like that, you pervert!"

'_Oh, exactly like that, Sakura.'_

"I get dreams about… oh forget it. I'm not telling you anything. And get that stupid grin off your face."

"Hmm… I don't think I want to know anyway." He chuckled when she glared at him. "So what does that mean? Are you some—what do you call them—clairvoyant?"

She looked up. "Clairvoyant?"

"Yeah, like maybe you can see the future and stuff."

"Uh… I don't know if I can see the _future_… but I can't explain it… it's…"

Dan shrugged. "This could be the ideal juicy bit of gossip for the tabloids."

"Huh?"

"Don't you know? Right now, you're the most famous nanny in Asia. They'd do anything for some stuff like this about you."

"Oh that… so you're planning to sell this bit of information to them?"

"Aw come on, Sakura. Do I really look like that kind of a guy to you?"

She smiled. "No, you don't." Leaning back and sighing, she asked, "How are Lien and Yuan?"

"They miss you like crazy, I'm sure. But I think Li's locked them up in a remote corner of the house and swallowed the keys."

"You mean you haven't seen them at all?"

"Well, I've been busy like hell. And for whatever little time I spend at the mansion, the kids are in their room. Yelan and Syaoran are probably the only people who get to even see them now."

"Oh."

"After what happened with Lu, I doubt they're going to trust any of us anymore," Dan explained, then added, "Except you, of course."

Sakura bit her lip at the mention of Lu. "Lu… how is she?"

"Not good," Dan shook his head gravely. "She's been taken into police custody."

She gasped. "But… I don't think she let her husband in for—"

"I know. That Wang guy was a heroin addict—the sort who'd do anything for money. Lu left him long ago but didn't divorce him. That day, he came saying he wanted to mend their relationship and was thinking of going into rehab—she let him in. And he took advantage of her naivety."

"Oh. Poor Lu."

"Yeah. Hopefully, she'll be let off lightly. But I doubt Yelan will take her in again," he sighed. "Well, let's leave that aside for now. When are you going to get out of this place?"

"The doctor said I'd be fit to leave tomorrow."

"Great! I'll tell Boss that. He's been in a sour mood for days. This will cheer him up for sure."

Sakura threw a flower stem at him.

* * *

"Welcome back, Miss Kinomoto. It's nice to see you again," Wei bowed, before picking up her luggage. "The mistress is waiting for you in the living room."

Sakura gulped. She hadn't expected a confrontation with Li Yelan as soon as she got back to the mansion. She followed Wei as he walked in.

"Mistress Li, Miss Kinomoto is here," he announced.

A woman sitting on the expensive sofa looked up from the book she was reading. She stood up and Sakura immediately felt intimidated by her. Her thick black hair set in a bun, her chin set high, and wearing a very intricately embroidered kimono, she was a grand figure indeed. Sakura could see where Syaoran got his good looks from. She was probably well over forty, but didn't look a day older than thirty. Her eyes were thin but her gaze was sharp. They were almost the same colour as Syaoran's. Almost.

"Miss Kinomoto." A slight nod of the head.

Sakura bowed. "Good morning, Mrs. Li."

"I wished to talk to you much before this, but because of… unforeseen circumstances… it wasn't possible." Her tone was very businesslike.

Sakura nodded mutely.

"I'm sure Syaoran has explained what is expected of you?"

"Yes, Mrs. Li…"

'_What were those words I had memorized?'_

"Discipline." Her mind struggled to come up with anything else.

"Not just discipline. Also sincerity, and dedication to your job. And knowing your place in this house."

Sakura felt herself getting more and more intimidated. "Ah. I understand, Mrs. Li."

"Very well." She turned around and sat back on the sofa. "I appreciate the fact that you helped in saving Lien and Yuan from the kidnapper. However," she regarded Sakura, head resting on her intertwined fingers, "would you care to explain why you were missing the evening the kidnapping took place?"

Sakura bit her lip. "I… um… had gone out on a date…"

Yelan raised an eyebrow. "A date? With whom?"

"Dan, Mr. Li's driver."

"I see."

"But we aren't romantically involved. We were just on a friendly date," Sakura quickly added.

"I suppose you decided the children would take care of themselves then?" she asked coldly.

Sakura widened her eyes in panic. "No! Mr. Li gave us permission. He…"

Yelan's eyes narrowed. "Are you trying to put the blame on my son?"

"No, I…" Sakura felt herself panicking. The conversation was not going well. "I thought Lu would take care of them…"

"Let me tell you another rule of this house—do not try to pass on your duties to others. Your carelessness almost cost us the kids—it's immaterial if you helped in getting them back. That simply lessens your mistake slightly." She leaned back. "You are to do what is expected of you. You are being paid for looking after the children. You are to look after the children and nothing else."

The sound of a door opening and shutting caused them both to look at the source. Li Syaoran walked into the living room, and spotting his mother, he bowed. "Good morning, Mother. Shall we go to the fashion house?"

Yelan smiled at her son. "Good morning, Syaoran. You go right ahead. I'll be with you in a moment."

Syaoran nodded, and without so much as a glance at Sakura, he walked off.

Yelan turned her attention back to Sakura. "Have I made myself clear, Miss Kinomoto?"

She bowed her head. "Yes, Mrs. Li."

"Good." Yelan stood up. "The children are in their room."

She walked past Sakura, stopping at the doorway. Turning her head slightly, she added, "Remember—you're to give your undivided attention to them if you wish to survive in this household. No childish romances and no alternate careers."

With that, she left.

Sakura sighed. She had wanted a little more gratitude from the Lis. _'But I guess it was my fault. I shouldn't have gone on that stupid date in the first place.'_

"Miss Kinomoto, your bags have been moved to your room," Wei interrupted her thoughts.

She smiled. "Thank you, Wei. I'll go and see the kids now."

"Go fast, they're waiting eagerly. They've been missing you a lot, asking me about you everyday."

Sakura felt her heart swell at that. Well at least someone in this house missed her.

She was just about to climb up the stairs leading to the kids' room when Dan came running from behind her, blocking her way. She stared at him as he struggled to catch his breath.

"What?"

"Sakura, I think you'd want to see this." He held up a newspaper clutched in his hand.

"Dan, I don't have time right now. I—"

"No, you _have_ to see this!" He thrust the paper into her hand.

Frowning, she unfolded it and nearly dropped it in shock. Staring out at her from the paper was a photo—of her and Li Syaoran sitting at a restaurant, facing each other. With Syaoran's hand on hers.

And it was right below the headline which screamed: '**Li Syaoran: Caught with the nanny!**'

She looked up at Dan in panic. "What…? Does Yelan…?"

"I don't think the Lis know about this… yet…"

She turned her eyes back at the paper in her hand and read on with dread.

"…_Kinomoto Sakura—the very same nanny who had bravely chased the kidnapper and rescued the kids at great risk to her own life—had very good reason to do so. A little birdie spotted her having dinner with their father, the day he was supposed to be on a date with his fiancée, Lauren Ross! What with Li Syaoran's squeaky clean media image, one would never expect him to do something like this…"_

Sakura stopped reading and looked up again, eyes wide.

"I'm so dead."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

"…and then they lived happily ever after."

Sakura closed the book and eyed the kids. Lien was looking at her as though she was expecting her to continue while Yuan seemed unimpressed by the ending of the story.

"That's it?" he asked.

"Well, yes. That's it," Sakura replied.

"But what about after the prince and princess got married?" Lien questioned.

"Umm… they lived happily ever after…"

"Yeah, right," Yuan scoffed. "Who lives 'happily ever after' _after_ they get married?"

Sakura's eyes widened. "You see, this prince and princess loved each other very much," she tried to explain.

"So? Are you saying my daddy and mommy didn't love each other—so they didn't live happily ever after?"

Sakura stared at Yuan in shock. "That's not what I…"

Yuan's eyes were challenging her and Lien's were expectant.

"I… I don't think I'm the right person to talk to you about all this."

"Why?"

"Because… I've been here for barely two months. And I don't know what happened between your mommy and daddy." She got up and kept the book on the bedside table. "Enough now. Time for sleep."

The kids watched her silently as she tucked them in.

"Lu said Mommy and Daddy had a silly but nasty fight," Lien spoke softly.

Sakura chose not to respond. "Goodnight, Lien. Goodnight, Yuan." She bent down and kissed them both on the forehead (at which Yuan turned pink).

"I miss Lu."

Sakura smiled sadly. "Me too."

She sighed as she switched the lights off and closed the door. The kids' behavior was much different from what she had been expecting after the kidnapping. Of course they had been very happy to see her back, but there had been no questions from their side. It was almost as if they had been instructed not to question her about the incident. Perhaps the Lis were scared that Sakura would divulge something they didn't want the kids to know.

Sakura herself was unsure if it was a good thing to keep the kids in the dark about everything. But she wasn't complaining—she shuddered imagining the kids' reaction if they ever came to know about the tabloid article linking her and Syaoran. She had suffered enough embarrassment due to it already. Dan's constant teasing and the pointed glances of the servants were driving her crazy. Tomoyo's reaction had been nothing short of ecstatic, calling her up as soon as she read the article. Remembering the conversation they had two days back still made Sakura blush hotly.

_'She's probably perfecting the designs for my wedding dress right now,' _Sakura thought resignedly. Luckily, Tomoyo still hadn't realized the connection between Syaoran and 'amber-eyes'. _'I'll have to leave the country and go into hiding if she does find out.'_

But what bothered her most was the reaction of the Lis. Surprisingly, they hadn't confronted her about the article at all. Sakura had been certain that Yelan would put the blame on her, saying she had set it up to get attention. But the older Li walked around the house coolly as though there was nothing wrong. Syaoran, on the other hand, had been avoiding her like the plague for the past two days, not even looking at her in the eye if he encountered her in the dining hall. Sakura suspected he had been the one to bear the brunt of Yelan's anger.

The only good that came from the article was Lauren Ross ending her frequent visits to the mansion. She was probably furious at Syaoran after the date, this incident just making her anger worse. _'Good thing too. I'm sure she'll murder me if she sees me.'_

"Miss Kinomoto, there's somebody here to see you."

Wei was standing at the door of her room, right across the kids' bedroom. Her room had been shifted next to the kids' room since the kidnapping.

"Oh. Who is it?"

"She didn't give her name. But she says she's from your hometown and a good friend of yours."

"From Tomoeda? Who's come to see me from Tomoeda at this hour?"

"I don't know. I told her to wait outside. Can't take any risks since…" He trailed off, lowering his voice. "I must caution you though, Mistress Li is not very pleased. Your friend better have a good reason for this visit."

She shook her head. "But I don't know who…" She sighed and walked down the stairs.

On reaching the living room, she spotted Li Yelan sitting on the sofa. Her eyes narrowed at Sakura's arrival. Sakura gulped and silently cursed whoever had come to meet her. Without meeting Yelan's eyes, she opened the door and stepped out to see Dan talking to a dark-haired lady who she had never seen before in her life.

"So how long have you known Sakura?" Dan was asking her in a suspicious way.

"Well that's none of your business, is it?" the woman replied cheekily. "I'm here to talk to Sakura… and ah, here she is." She smiled widely at her. "Hello, Sakura darling. Long time no see, eh? Let's go somewhere where we won't be… disturbed…"

She grabbed Sakura by the arm and started leading her away from Dan, who was still throwing suspicious glances in their direction.

Sakura blinked. "But who… what…?"

The woman ignored Sakura as she led her and stopped when she was sure they were out of earshot. Swiftly turning around, she smiled at Sakura again. "This place is perfect for us to talk."

"Uh… do I know you?"

"I'd be highly surprised if you do know me. That was a small lie I had to say in order to meet you."

Sakura's eyes widened. "You—you lied? Just so you could meet me? Do you know how much trouble I could get into for this?"

The woman shook her head, still smiling. "You won't get into any trouble if we do this tactfully."

Sakura frowned. "Who are you?"

"You can call me Ling. I'm a journalist." She paused. "Do you remember the article about you and Li Syaoran?"

"Article… why… wait. Did _you_ write that article?"

Ling smirked. "Why? Didn't you like it? Made you even more famous, didn't it?"

Sakura spluttered in indignation and stared at the other woman wordlessly.

"You've created quite the stir in the media. Everyone wants to know more about the nanny who so bravely rescued the Li kids and managed to win Li Syaoran's heart."

"So you want to interview me, is that it?"

Ling nodded, smile still firmly in place.

"And what if I say I have no interest in answering the questions of someone who wouldn't hesitate to twist every word I say?"

Ling's smile faltered a little. "Our paper doesn't twist anything. We tell it as it is."

"Oh, I see. Then how come there's nothing going on between Mr. Li and me when your paper says otherwise?"

"Now, now, Sakura. You don't have to hide anything anymore. The whole of Hong Kong knows now."

"The whole of Hong Kong knows nothing. They've got to be totally gullible to believe in such rubbish."

"You think? Wasn't the photograph proof enough?"

"Photographs can be deceiving."

Ling sighed and chuckled. "Sakura, Sakura. I get it now." She smirked again. "It's the money you're worried about, isn't it? Oh don't you worry. Our boss is very generous in that regard. But that will depend on how… _interesting_ the interview is."

"Oh so that's it, isn't it? When you say you want to know more about me, it's not my life history you're interested in, is it?" She felt her voice rising as she said it.

"Ssshhh… not so loud… and well, I suppose you've got the gist of it, yes. And think about it, you'll be the talk of the town for weeks."

Sakura clenched her fists, the urge to wipe the smug smile off Ling's face overwhelming her. "Yeah, and you'll get the scoop of the year—'Kinomoto Sakura confesses to having Li Syaoran wrapped around her fingers' or something like that." She didn't bother to keep her voice down as she spoke. "You know what? My answer's 'no'! I'm a girl with morals, and I think your newspaper could do with some. Don't you people have anything else to report?"

The smug smile had left Ling's face, much to Sakura's satisfaction, and she looked at Sakura with an eyebrow raised. "We write what people want to read."

"I bet you do. So is this what people want to read—a bunch of lies about someone who deserves to get some privacy? You waste time and space to print rubbish when instead you could be—"

"Don't you tell me what to print in my paper, girl," Ling cut her off sharply. "I know way more than you do about this business."

"Really? Then why are you so slow on the uptake when someone says 'no'?"

Ling's eyes narrowed. "Be careful, girl. That sharp tongue of yours could get you into trouble." She straightened up and suddenly smiled. "Very well, it was a pleasure talking to you, Miss Kinomoto. Thank you for the lovely interview." Her smile turned into a smirk.

Sakura blinked as Ling turned around and walked off. _'Odd woman.' _Shrugging off the feeling of unease, Sakura headed back towards the mansion.

She froze when she saw Li Yelan standing at the door, looking straight at her.

"Was that a journalist?" she asked.

Sakura nodded.

"Hmm… I had a suspicion. You handled her better than what I was expecting."

Sakura looked up in surprise. _'Did she just __**praise**__ me?'_ Yelan's eyes were softer than usual and her lips were curved slightly upwards in a barely there smile.

* * *

_'Maybe Yelan was testing me last night,'_ Sakura thought as she ate her breakfast. _'She probably guessed Ling was a journalist as soon as she saw her. But she didn't kick her out as she wanted to see how I would react. Whether I would send Ling away or be eager to get my name in the papers again.' _She inwardly smiled._ 'Clever woman.'_

Sakura felt a sense of achievement. What she got last night from Yelan was probably the closest thing to appreciation she would ever get from her. It made her want to do a victory dance.

"They're still at it."

Sakura looked up, her thoughts interrupted. "Huh?"

The cook made a face. "Li and Lauren. They're still arguing. You can hear them from here now."

"Oh." This morning, much to Sakura's chagrin, Lauren had come over to the mansion. She'd greeted Yelan and marched straight into Syaoran's room. Minutes later, sounds of a heated argument could be heard throughout the mansion.

"No guesses as to _what_ they're arguing about," one of the servants said pointedly, glancing at Sakura.

"And especially if Lauren Ross realizes that a _certain someone's_ room has been shifted right to the centre of the mansion. She's going to throw a fit. I mean, that makes it more… accessible now…" another servant commented.

Sakura stood up. "Well, I'm full. Got to go and teach the kids now. See you guys later."

She ignored the not so subtle comments that came her way as she washed her hands and made her way out of the servants' common room. She smiled—nothing could ruin her mood today. She was still on a high at being appreciated by the hard to impress Li Yelan.

_'Their comments are getting old anyway. I'm no—'_

"Ooff!" Her trail of thoughts was interrupted when she banged straight into someone.

She looked up to meet a pair of furious amber eyes. "Watch where you're going, Miss Kinomoto," he snapped at her and walked off.

Sakura stared at Syaoran's retreating figure in shock. _'Geez, what have __**I**__ done? If he's angry at Lauren, why's he taking it out on me?'_ She frowned. The fact that Syaoran had left his room implied that he had stopped arguing with Lauren, which meant that…

"Kinomoto Sakura," a mocking voice came from behind her.

Lauren Ross stood a few feet away, hands crossed and eyes throwing daggers. Sakura gulped. She had been bracing herself for a confrontation with Lauren ever since she'd read that article. But right now was a bit unexpected.

Lauren strode towards her. "Enjoying the attention, are you?" she whispered scathingly, her face inches away from Sakura's.

"I…" For some reason, Sakura's brain had ceased functioning and she couldn't come up with anything to defend herself.

"I'm Syaoran's fiancée. I know him and I love him. I've seen lots of fan girls like you, who know nothing about him, but would do anything to get their name linked with him." Her voice was cold. "Stay away from him. You don't even come close to his league." With that, she spun around and strode off.

Sakura stood frozen in place, feeling an odd sense of guilt and hurt. She didn't know what it was but something Lauren had said found its mark.

* * *

_'Sometimes, you just don't know what to do.'_

Sakura sighed, fiddling with the ends of her pillow. She still had a hollow feeling and she cursed Lauren for it.

_'Why did she affect me so much?'_

Though she had to admit it wasn't just Lauren who had affected her. It was Syaoran's angry dismissal as well. It was the first time he had said something to her since… well, since the infamous 'double-date'. Actually, it was the first time he had even acknowledged her presence.

She tried to make out the time on the clock reflected in the moonlight. It was well past midnight now. _'God, at this rate, I'm not going to get any sleep tonight.'_

A knock on the door made her jump. _'Who's knocking at this time of the night?'_ She waited to see if she'd just imagined it. At the next knock, she slowly got up from bed and walked hesitatingly to the door.

"Who is it?" she asked. Another knock came as a response.

She opened the door slowly and wasn't really surprised to see a messy haired, rumpled looking Li Syaoran standing outside. He was leaning against the door frame, clad in black trousers and a grey button up shirt, which was hanging loose.

"Mr. Li? W-What…?" She tried not to stare at his exposed chest.

"Hello, Sakura." His voice was low and slurred.

Sakura's eyes widened. "Are you drunk, Mr. Li?"

"Maybe a little." He gave a half smile and she felt her heartbeat fasten. "I-I can hold my liquor, you know."

But Sakura wasn't very convinced by that statement. He was looking at her in an altogether different manner and it made her feel a bit nervous. She suddenly realized she wasn't wearing anything apart from her thin nightdress. _'Oh shit! Stupid, stupid Sakura!'_

"Is—is there something you want, Mr. Li?" she asked, trying her best to hide her nervousness.

He blinked slowly. "Huh?" He frowned. "I… I… don't know… I don't know why I came here…" He looked genuinely confused. "Did I disturb you?"

"Umm… not really, Mr. Li."

"Syaoran."

"What?"

He smiled again. "I'm Syaoran, remember?"

Sakura felt warmth on her cheeks. "Alright. Syaoran, then. Goodnight Syaoran."

"No, wait. I remember." He pushed the door fully open. "I remember why I came—I wanted to… uh… apologize."

"Apologize?"

"For-for yelling at you in the m-morning."

"Oh."

"And also to thank you." He stared at the floor. "For saving Lien and Yuan," he added softly, his voice cracking. "I-I d-don't know how-how to—"

Without warning, he stepped in and enveloped her in a hug, shaking and crying.

_'Oh. My. God.'_ Sakura panicked.

"It gets too much sometimes. The kids, Fu, mother's expectations, Lauren, the fashion house—just too much. I can't even take it out on anyone. I just need a break from it all," he rambled on between sobs.

She raised her arms but didn't know what to do with them. _'He's getting all angsty and emotional on me. What do I do __**now**_

Sakura decided that the best course of action was to pat him consolingly on the shoulder. The shaking stopped but he continued rambling. "All these women in my life are driving me nuts. Mother treats me like a five-year-old, Fu won't leave my kids alone, and Lauren behaves like we're already married."

She continued patting him on the shoulder. He stopped crying after some time and she let out a sigh of a relief. She stiffened when she felt a pair of lips press softly against her exposed shoulder. _'Accidental. Just accidental.'_

Her heart skipped a beat when the lips pressed more firmly the second time. "Sakura…" She felt a warm breath against her neck.

_'No! This isn't right, Sakura. He's drunk. He doesn't know what he's doing…'_ The lips traveled up her neck, leaving soft kisses in their wake. _'He's engaged to another woman…'_ The lips traced her jaw line. _'He's your boss!'_ The lips captured her own and Sakura was far too gone to care.

He kissed her hungrily, slowly pushing her further into the room. Her fingers reached up, running through his messy hair and allowing herself to be led.

The lips left her own to travel back down her neck. The kisses were no longer soft, they were insistent and demanding. A hand trailed up her arm to rest on her shoulder.

"Sakura… God, you're so beautiful… let me…" Fingers tugged at the strap of her nightdress.

Sakura's eyes flew open. _'Let me…? Let me what? Use you as a stress relief? Play around with you so that I can escape my problems?' _Her mind cleared immediately and the hollow feeling returned. _'What am I _doing

She wriggled and tried to push Syaoran away. "No, stop…" But he didn't seem to hear her and pulled her closer. "No," Sakura tried again. "I said stop it!" she yelled, and pushed at him with all her strength.

Syaoran stumbled but managed to steady himself. His eyes, darkened with need, stared at her in annoyance and surprise. "What?" he spat.

Sakura clenched her hands and stepped back nervously. In the faint moonlight, she saw his expression change from annoyance to realization to horror in seconds.

"Oh God," he swayed. "What have I done?" He fisted his hair. "Oh God."

He took a couple of steps back, looking almost sober but miserable.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He didn't meet her eye when he said it. Without another word, he left the room.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** I apologize for the :ahem: _slight_ delay. This chapter gave me a lot of trouble and I'm not too happy with the end product. Anyway, all due credits to my lovely beta-reader AkemiLove. Lub you Ke-chan!**  
**

**Chapter 14**

"**I have Li Syaoran wrapped around my finger,"**

says everyone's favorite nanny, Kinomoto Sakura

_In an exclusive interview with the HK Weekly, Kinomoto Sakura, nanny of the famous Li twins, confessed to having their father, Li Syaoran, under her thumb. It seems the young Li heir is completely besotted with her. And considering that the Li twins adore her and even Li Yelan seems to have taken a liking to her, do we hear wedding bells soon? _

_One must feel for Lauren Ross though…_

She should have seen this coming, especially after that Ling woman's cryptic remarks. She groaned and fought the urge to bang her head against the nearest wall.

"Sakura, you bad, bad girl! You didn't even tell me!"

She looked at her best friend, sitting beside her on the bench. "Tomoyo, tell me honestly—you don't believe this nonsense, do you?"

Tomoyo glanced at the article in the paper. "Shouldn't I believe it? I mean, they've actually quoted you saying this."

"That's not how I said it!"

Tomoyo's eyebrows shot up. "You mean you actually said—"

"No! I mean, I didn't say it like that…" Sakura corrected. Catching Tomoyo's skeptical expression, she quickly added, "I mean, that's not what I had meant when I said it… I was just trying to…" She sighed. "Oh, forget it."

"Sakura…"

"Yeah?"

"Are you and Li Syaoran having an affair?"

Sakura nearly fell off the bench. "No!" she said a bit too quickly, and looked away. Images from last night flashed before her and she felt her face heat up. There was no point in denying. Tomoyo read Sakura like an open book and she was bound to know something was up from Sakura's reaction alone.

"Oh my God, you _are_!"

"No, I'm not having an _'affair'_ with him. It's just…" She trailed off.

"Just what?"

Sakura bit her lip. '_Should I tell her about my dreams…? And last night…'_ She frowned. Last night had left her feeling very confused. She didn't know if it had been real to start with. In the morning, she'd heard from the servants that Syaoran had left for the Fashion House last evening and hadn't come back home since. _'If it had been a dream, it had certainly been… vivid…'_

Tomoyo shook her out of her thoughts. "God Sakura, how deep in are you?" She grabbed her hand. "I should've known. Spending everyday around Li Syaoran would do that to any woman." She brought Sakura's hand to her chest. "You're in love with him, aren't you?"

This time Sakura did fall off the bench. "_What?_"

"Don't deny it, Sakura. It's written all over your face. You're head over heels in love with Li Syaoran."

Sakura picked herself up from the ground, spluttering. Her mind came up with a hundred things to defend herself, but she seemed unable to shape them into coherent sentences.

"It's okay, Sakura. Such things happen all the time. There's nothing to feel embarrassed about," Tomoyo said gently.

Sakura groaned. "Tomoyo, please don't make me feel worse about this." She turned away from her friend to watch Yuan and Lien taking turns to play on the slide. The sounds of their laughter filled the usually quiet Li gardens.

Love? Love wasn't even close to what she felt for Li Syaoran. In fact, if it weren't for the dreams she had, she would have probably hated the guy. Confused… confused would be a more apt word.

"Sakura, I'm trying to make you feel better, not worse. Personally, I think you'd make a lovely couple. Maybe you—"

"I am _not_ in love with Li Syaoran," Sakura said through gritted teeth. "It's just a stupid crush."

"Crush? Ah, that's how it always starts. It then deepens into—"

"Remember the dreams I talked to you about?" Sakura cut her off.

"Dreams?" Tomoyo blinked. "Oh, _those_ dreams… the _'intense amber eyes'_ dreams…" She giggled.

Sakura frowned. "Yeah, those dreams. Well guess what? I finally found out who the mystery guy in my dreams is."

Tomoyo's eyes widened. "Really? Who…? Wait… don't tell me it's…"

Sakura nodded miserably. "Haven't you ever noticed Li Syaoran's eyes?"

"Oh my!" Tomoyo gasped. "Intense amber eyes!"

"Bingo," Sakura said flatly. "And to think I could have so easily hated that man."

Tomoyo gaped at her best friend and Sakura actually felt much better, now that she'd shared her biggest secret with her. She considered telling her about last night as well and how she'd been going crazy since morning trying to figure it out. But all such considerations were thrown out of the window when she caught the faraway expression on Tomoyo's face. That had always spelt trouble for Sakura.

Tomoyo stood up slowly, muttering something under her breath. '_Oh dear, she's making wedding plans…'_ Sakura thought with dread.

"I've got it!" Sakura jumped at Tomoyo's exclamation. She turned to look at Sakura, smiling widely. "You know, I've been thinking and thinking, and I just couldn't come up with anything good. But you just gave me the most brilliant idea!"

"What are you talking about?"

"The theme for my collection, of course!"

Sakura blinked. "Huh?"

"_Dreams of Amber_. Yes, that's what the name of my collection is going to be… _Dreams of Amber_…" She had a dazed look on her face. "Meiling will _love_ it."

Sakura felt the urge to bang her head against the wall in full force.

* * *

"You're fairly new to this, so I'll let it go this time. However, I must impress upon you the seriousness of this situation." 

"I understand, Mrs. Li." Sakura bowed. "And I apologize again for my mistake."

"I hope you now realize how low the paparazzi can sink. You should be very careful with what you say. They'll twist it and sensationalize it, just as you've witnessed now. Then you'll find it hard trying to convince people otherwise." Yelan calmly sipped her tea. "If I hadn't been present at that time, I'd have easily believed that article and would have fired you immediately."

Sakura shivered at the coldness in Yelan's voice. She pictured a thousand ways of how she would murder that Ling woman if she ever met her again. She had come _so_ close in gaining Li Yelan's trust and appreciation.

There was a knock on the door. "Come in," Yelan called out.

The door opened to reveal Li Syaoran, clad in a grey business suit. Sakura froze. He walked in without so much as a glance in her direction. _'Yeah, well, I expected as much.'_

"Mother." He bowed. "You wished to talk to me?"

"Indeed," she nodded. "In Miss Kinomoto's presence."

Dread filled Sakura and she felt her heartbeat fasten. _'What does she mean by that…?'_

Syaoran tilted his head. "May I ask the reason for that?"

"I have a good reason to believe that you two," she gestured at the space between them, "seem to have some problem getting along."

Sakura gulped.

"What made you think so, Mother?"

"Well, I've heard from the servants, obviously. They told how… volatile things were before I came here. Things even went so far that you actually fired Miss Kinomoto, but later allowed her to stay." She took a sip from her teacup. "Is this true?"

"Yes, Mother."

"And is it also true that you suggested the infamous 'double-date' just to spite Miss Kinomoto?"

Syaoran's eyes widened. "That's not true! I would never act so childish. You know it, Mother."

"Then pray tell me the reason for your… disagreements." She took another sip of her tea and gazed at them from the rim of the cup. Her gaze was calculating.

Sakura felt nervous and uncomfortable. This wasn't a conversation. This was an interrogation. _'She suspects! She suspects something's up.'_

Syaoran swallowed. "It was… nothing serious…"

Yelan raised an eyebrow. "Nothing serious? Then why did you fire her?"

"I…" Syaoran seemed at a loss for words. For the first time, he looked vulnerable. Well, second, if last night had been real. Regardless, Sakura immediately felt sorry for him.

"Mrs. Li, it was serious."

Both pairs of eyes turned to her, though Sakura tried to focus only on Yelan. Somehow, she knew that if she looked Syaoran in the eye, she'd know if last night had actually happened. And she wasn't prepared to find that out now, in front of Yelan. She pushed the thought to the back of her mind.

"Is that so? Care to elaborate?"

Sakura decided that telling the truth was the best option. "I-I was repeatedly rude to Mr. Li. I've this tendency to forget who I'm speaking to when I'm riled up, and I get riled up quite often. Mr. Li has been very tolerant and patient with me."

Yelan regarded her wordlessly.

"He had a very good reason to fire me that day. I crossed my limit," Sakura continued. "I apologize for my rudeness."

She had never apologized to Syaoran for answering him back before. Her pride had not allowed it. But later, when she had thought back with a cool mind, she realized that her words could have been described as nothing short of spiteful. Now as she apologized in front of Yelan, even though the apology wasn't directly aimed at Syaoran, it was sincere.

Yelan seemed to consider her words. She held Sakura's gaze for a while before turning to Syaoran. "Is this true Syaoran?"

He sighed. "Yes, Mother. It is true," he said hesitantly. Sakura wondered why he wasn't too keen on criticizing her before Yelan.

"So Miss Kinomoto was so rude to you that you fired her, yet you decided to keep her later on. Why is that?"

"Because Lien and Yuan are quite fond of her."

Yelan raised an eyebrow. "Is that the only reason?"

"Yes, Mother."

"I'm sure you could've found another nanny who the kids are _'fond'_ of."

Syaoran closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Mother, we've had _twelve_ nannies before her and not one of them managed to come even close to the kids," he said evenly. He seemed to be losing patience now.

Yelan seemed to have sensed that. She remained silent. Sakura didn't like the look on her face. _'She must have heard the servants gossiping about Syaoran and me. This whole "not getting along" talk is just a ruse for her to find out what's actually going on.'_

"Very well then," Yelan finally spoke, putting her teacup down on the table. "If that's the case… Miss Kinomoto, I hope you'll have more control over your temper from now on…"

Sakura felt relief washing through her and she nodded firmly.

"…you know the rules of this house and you're to abide by them. Respect is a very important rule. That's all I have to say to you, Miss Kinomoto. You're dismissed," she said with a wave of her hand. "I have some private matters to discuss with Syaoran."

Sakura bowed, and carefully avoiding Syaoran's glance, she left the room.

* * *

Sakura was slowly getting tired of this. As long as she worked for the Lis, she had to be careful of her every move, her every word—and she was someone who acted instinctively. She wasn't the kind of person who thought carefully before doing or saying anything. She considered handing in her resignation letter to Li Yelan. 

'_No, I can't do that. That would be escapism… I'm stronger than that. Plus, there are too many things binding me to this place. Lien and Yuan, Tomoyo is also here. Then there's…'_ Her mind refused to complete the sentence. Though, she knew—she knew there was something… someone else compelling her to stay.

"Fuck that! I need more time!"

Sakura froze at the door to the servants' commons. The voice had sounded like Dan's.

"Yeah, if you haven't noticed, I don't have any money either!"

He seemed to be talking on the phone. She paused to listen.

"Okay, okay, just listen… just tell him I…" His voice trembled a bit. "What? Are you crazy? I can't do that!" He paused for a bit. "No," he finally whispered hoarsely. "No, I'm telling you I can't..." There was a click of the receiver being placed back on the phone.

Sakura was so shocked by the conversation that she forgot to slip away when the door opened. Dan stiffened when he saw her.

"You heard." His expression was grim.

Sakura nodded nervously.

Without warning, he grabbed her arm and led her away from the commons.

"What…?" she asked.

"We need to talk. But not here."

She followed him silently as he led her out of the mansion and into the lawns, finally stopping beneath a tree. He turned around. He looked very pale.

"I-I'm sort of short of money right now," he explained.

"I gathered as much." Sakura paused. "Dan, is it serious?"

He gulped. "Kind of, yeah. Before this job, I'd tried to set up my own business. I borrowed a lot of money for that. My business sunk, along with the money. And they want the money back now."

"Dan, 'they' aren't bad people, are they?"

"They aren't exactly on the right side of the law, if that's what you mean." He wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. "I wanted quick money, you know? And none of the banks were willing to lend me anything."

Sakura's eyes widened. "Dan, do you realize how serious this is? If you've been mixing with _those_ sort—"

"I know. I know. I just…" Dan pursed his lips. "Just don't tell Li, okay?"

"But Dan, this is…"

"Please, Sakura. He'll fire me if he finds out. This job is the only way I can pay back the money," Dan pleaded. "I'll… try to sort this out myself… I'll manage…"

Sakura wasn't very convinced by this.

But before she could reply, a sharp voice interrupted. "What are you two doing out here?"

It was Syaoran, standing with eyes narrowed, looking at the pair suspiciously.

Dan immediately went back to his usual nonchalant self. "Nothing much, Boss. Don't get to talk to each other much these days. Just catching up on that."

"Out here?" Syaoran asked, one eyebrow raised.

Dan shrugged. "Anyway, I'll go now. I'll catch up with you later, Sakura."

Before walking off, he fixed Sakura with a pointed look, silently pleading with her to not reveal his secret.

Sakura remained unmoving for a moment before deciding to follow Dan inside. She tried not to look Syaoran in the eye.

"Sakura."

She stopped. "Yes, Mr. Li?"

"Back there with Mother… I… thank you," he said softly.

She frowned, confused. She hadn't really done or said anything to deserve the gratitude, and going against the warning in her head, she met Syaoran's gaze.

'_Oh. My. God.'_

His eyes held a mixture of sadness, longing and guilt, and a silent plea for forgiveness. It finally dawned on her. _'Last night wasn't a dream. It was real!'_ Sakura reeled. So Syaoran had indeed come to her room and kissed her and had… wanted to do a lot more.

This changed everything.

Sakura tore her gaze away and fled.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

It hadn't taken long for Li Yelan to call a press conference in the lawns in front of the Li mansion. She had described it as an attempt to 'clear all misunderstanding', but Sakura knew better.

The media was in frenzy since that fateful article had come out. Already comparisons were being made to Syaoran's high school days, when he had started dating a girl coming from a humble background whom Yelan had immediately disapproved of. 'It's like history repeating itself,' one magazine had stated. Another had called it, 'Reemergence of Li Syaoran's rebellious streak'.

Which was why Yelan had decided to take matters into her own hands. A press conference seemed to be the only solution.

Sakura silently watched the servants arrange the chairs on the lawn. Already reporters had started arriving. No compromises were being made on security though, guards stationed at the entrance scanned and verified the IDs of every person coming in.

"Hey miss, over here!"

Sakura was blinded by a sudden flash of light, accompanied with the sound of a camera going off. She stared in shock at the photographer who had just taken her photo.

"Miss Kinomoto, isn't it?" he grinned at her. "You mind if I take a few more?"

Sakura flushed, both from anger and embarrassment at being caught unaware. "Yes, I do mind."

She turned around and marched back into the house. Yuan was curiously looking outside and Lien was playing with her doll, disinterested in what was going on.

"Who are all those people, Sakura?" Yuan asked, eyes wide.

"It's the media. They are people who write in newspapers and say the news on TV," Sakura explained, disdain evident in her voice.

"Oh, those boring people. But why are they here?"

"Umm…they just want to ask your grandmother and father a few questions…"

"What kind of questions?"

"Well, I'm not so sure of that myself…"

Yuan frowned. He didn't seem to like that idea. "I want to go outside and see," he said.

"Yuan, you shouldn't—" Sakura started to say, but he had already run outside. She sighed and followed him.

"Ah, if it isn't the young Master Li Yuan. How precious!"

Sakura felt her stomach lurch at the sight of Ling. The article, the photograph, the interview; all the memories came flooding back to her and her face burned with humiliation.

Currently, Ling was beaming, kneeling in front of Yuan with his hand in hers. He was looking quizzically back at her.

"So cute! You're like a younger version of your father! Has anyone told you that?" Yuan shook his head, though his eyes seemed suspicious of this strange woman. She ruffled his hair even as he tried to move away. "So Yuan… I was wondering why—"

"Don't even think about it." Sakura rushed forward and wrapped one arm protectively around Yuan. She glared at Ling.

Ling raised an eyebrow at her, smirking. "Already trying to exercise your authority around the Li mansion? You aren't married to Li Syaoran yet, you know."

Sakura ignored the jab. "I doubt Mrs. Li will be very happy if she hears that the journalists are trying to get information from her grandson. You wouldn't want the press conference called off now, would you?"

Ling's smirk faltered a little. Her eyes flashed dangerously before she stalked off.

* * *

"Indeed. These rumors are absolutely false and have no basis whatsoever."

Sitting at the middle of a table and flanked by Meiling and Syaoran on either side, Yelan handled all the questions thrown at her with ease. Syaoran, however, didn't seem too happy about being there. Lauren Ross sat beside him, giving her best smile to all the photographers who were competing against each other to get her picture. And Meiling sat silently, seemingly having no clue why she was there.

Sakura watched the proceedings standing a slight distance away, trying to avoid the photographers from spotting her. Dan stood behind her, clucking his tongue at some of the very harsh questions being thrown at the Lis.

"Mr. Li, what about the picture that was taken of you and Miss Kinomoto at the restaurant?" one of the journalists questioned.

Syaoran scowled. "Photographs can be deceiving. They can be manipulated." He took a gulp of water from the glass placed in front of him.

"Are you implying that—"

"Next," Yelan interrupted.

"Mrs. Li," another reporter spoke up. "What if the rumors were true? Would you have accepted this relationship?"

Yelan's eyes narrowed. "I'm not going to answer that question as I see no purpose or need for such a question," she said sharply. "Next."

"Miss Ross, are you and Mr. Li committed?"

Lauren smiled. "Of course; and very much in love." She moved closer to Syaoran and locked her arm with his, resting her head on his shoulder. He didn't show any resistance. Instead, he relaxed under her touch and smiled down at her.

Sakura felt her gut twist. She resisted the urge to walk across and pull Lauren off him.

"So can we hope to hear wedding bells in the future?"

Before Lauren could answer, Syaoran provided. "We haven't yet decided on a wedding date." He smiled again at Lauren and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips. Photographers clicked away wildly.

Sakura knew that she'd leave marks where her fingernails were digging into her palm. It was all she could do to prevent herself from yelling and prying the seemingly 'happy couple' off each other and create a scene in front of everyone.

She caught Dan's gaze. He was smirking at her knowingly. She frowned and looked away.

"Ah. Next question," Yelan announced, looking very pleased.

"Ma'am, could we talk to Miss Kinomoto? Just one question?" a reporter sitting in the first row asked. He pointed in Sakura's direction.

Sakura stiffened as all eyes turned to her. "Shit!" she swore under her breath.

"Whatever you wish to ask her, you can ask me," Yelan said authoritatively. "She's a bit shy."

Sakura let out a sigh of relief.

"We just wanted to ask her about these other rumors…"

"What other rumors?" Yelan asked, eyebrow raised.

The reporter shrugged. "That currently Miss Kinomoto is dating…" he checked his notepad, "…Mr. Li's driver… Daniel Blake. Is that true?"

Yelan smiled. "Yes, that is correct."

Sakura's jaw dropped.

"We don't generally allow our employees to pursue romances with each other, but Sakura is special to us," Yelan continued, still smiling, and Sakura had to keep her shock aside for a moment to admire her acting skills. "I must admit, they're quite a sweet couple."

Sakura closed her mouth and turned to Dan. He mirrored her stunned expression. There were whispers amongst the reporters; they all looked genuinely surprised as well.

"Really? We had no idea…" someone from the back row was heard as saying.

"Yes. It has been going on for quite some time now," Yelan said calmly, as though unaware of the stir she was creating. "Which was why we all found these rumors linking my son and Sakura quite ridiculous. In fact, the day the photograph was taken, both couples were on a double-date. The photographer made it seem that my son and Sakura were together."

There were more whispers. "Mrs. Li, is it a common practice for members of your family to take employees along on dates with their would-be spouse?" came a question. It drew chuckles from the audience. Sakura immediately recognized that voice… Ling's.

Yelan's eyes narrowed. "Like I said earlier, Sakura is special to us."

"So you're saying, Mrs. Li, that Sakura is in a serious relationship with Daniel Blake and there's no chance she would be a hindrance to Syaoran's and Lauren's relationship."

"Absolutely," Yelan nodded. "Why don't you directly ask the happy couple?"

Sakura stiffened again as all eyes turned to her and Dan.

"Miss Kinomoto? Is it true that you and Daniel Blake are in a serious relationship?"

Sakura took a deep breath and opened her mouth to say something along the lines of 'Yelan can go to hell! Dan and I are just friends', but she was cut off by an arm resting on her shoulder. She looked up at Dan in surprise. He was facing the reporters, a smirk on his face.

"Yeah, it's true." The arm around her squeezed her shoulder warningly. "We've been going steady for months."

Sakura swallowed and forced a smile. It dawned on her that Dan was playing along to keep Li Yelan happy. She nodded, hoping that her agreement was convincing.

"Can we take a shot?" someone asked. But the photographers weren't asking for permission. The furious clicking of cameras started immediately and Sakura felt extremely self-conscious.

Dan's arm slipped from her shoulder to wrap around her waist. Slowly, he turned her around to face him and tilted her face up with his free hand. Without warning, he kissed her.

She barely registered the gasps from the reporters and photographers, too shocked by what was happening. Dan was kissing her… and it wasn't a chaste kiss like the one Syaoran had given Lauren. He seemed to be really enjoying and making the most of it. Sakura allowed her eyes to fall shut but she didn't kiss back. Dan didn't look like he minded though.

Between the sounds of catcalls and cameras clicking, Sakura distinctly heard the sound of glass breaking. She pulled away from the kiss.

As if on cue, the journalists whooped and cheered. Dan looked around and grinned, one arm still around her waist. Sakura smiled nervously.

"Excuse me. I need to go inside."

Sakura's attention was drawn towards Syaoran, who was currently pushing past journalists in an effort to get back inside the mansion. She noticed a drop of blood oozing from a cut on the palm of his right hand. He wasn't looking at her directly but she could make out his expression. It was beyond fury; he looked ready to deck someone.

Sakura's gaze flicked to Syaoran's now empty seat. Shards of glass lay on the table in front of it

'_So_ he_ was the source of the sound of glass breaking. But how did he break his glass? Did he grip it too hard…?' _

No one else seemed to have noticed this though. Everyone was too absorbed with Sakura and Dan's display.

'_No one else, except Lauren Ross…'_ Sakura realized, spotting Lauren's frown. _'…and Li Yelan…'_ Sakura gulped at the dangerous expression on the older woman's face. Her eyes were narrowed and she was observing Syaoran's retreating form speculatively.

* * *

Sakura had never known jealousy before. It was not in her nature to be jealous. But now… she was fast making up for all the lost time. The scene replayed in her mind countless times—Syaoran smiling down at Lauren and kissing her softly. And each time Sakura felt ill remembering it. But it wasn't because of the kiss.

It was the smile.

She had never seen Syaoran give a smile like that to anyone… except Lien and Yuan. Now, she'd have to add Lauren to that small list. That thought did nothing to placate her.

The rational part of her brain tried to come up with a reason for her envy. Yes, she found Li Syaoran attractive. Yes, she had a crush on him.

But she'd had crushes on many guys before this. None of them had caused her to react like this. This was just not right. Especially after that night, she shouldn't have felt anything for Li Syaoran—she had no idea what he felt for her. She was still smarting over how he had tried to use her as a mean to forget his problems for a night. True, he had been stressed and drunk, but what had prompted him to come to her room? If it were someone else in her place, would a drunk and uninhibited Syaoran have done the same? She imagined Lauren in her place… one thing she knew for sure—Lauren wouldn't have resisted Syaoran like she had… Sakura quickly pushed that train of thought away.

However, a part of her couldn't help but feel flattered at the thought that Syaoran found her attractive enough to kiss her, even if he had to be drunk to do it. Then there had been his reaction this afternoon. She remembered Syaoran's furious expression after Dan had kissed her. Had he been jealous? Or was he just angry at having attention drawn away from him and Lauren? The latter explanation was a stretch. Syaoran didn't come across as the type to crave attention…

'_Well if he was jealous, it serves him right. What was he thinking, snuggling with Lauren in public like that?'_ Sakura thought with satisfaction.

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. She looked at the clock in her room. It was 9:35 PM. She slowly got up and walked towards the door. "Who is it?"

"Hey, it's me," came Dan's voice.

Sakura frowned. She was still angry at Dan for that kiss. "Too bad. I've gone to sleep."

"Sakuraaaa, please. I want to talk to you…" Dan pleaded. "Listen, I'm really, really, really sorry, okay? I just… would you open the door and let me apologize properly?"

Sakura stayed unmoving for some time. Slowly, she opened the door. Dan stood with an apologetic grin on his face.

"Don't give me that look and expect me to forgive you."

He sighed. "Okay, I know what I did is… unforgivable, according to you…"

"According to _me_? What is that supposed to mean? _Any_ girl in my position would have been offen—"

"All right, all right." Dan raised his hands up in defeat. "According to umm… _general opinion_… what I did is unforgivable. But…" he quickly added before she could interrupt him, "don't you see? I was just trying to save our butts!"

Sakura blinked. "What do you mean?"

"When Yelan made up the whole Sakura-and-Dan-are-a-couple story, she was obviously expecting us to play along. And we're really unconvincing as a couple. Those reporters are cunning—I had to make it look believable."

"That's it? That's your justification?"

"Isn't it enough? If anything in our behavior had made it seem that Yelan was lying, we would have been in major trouble, and I rather like my job here. I've no intention to get sacked."

"But…"

"I know how you'd have handled it… out rightly deny it without thinking. Probably call Yelan a few names…" Dan chuckled. "I obviously couldn't let you open your mouth."

Sakura kept silent.

"Then when they were taking our shots, you were so _tense_. You looked like you'd rather be _anywhere_ but with me—the vibe was all wrong. Like I said, kissing you was the only way I could make us look convincing as a couple." Dan paused to observe her reaction.

She didn't answer. She hated to admit it, but Dan was right.

"I'm not defending Yelan or anything. What she did wasn't right—she's put us in a tight spot now," he added. "But I'm an opportunist—I like to make the most of any situation. I've been wanting to kiss you for a long time…" He winked and chuckled at her offended look. "So yeah… that covers my reasons for kissing you."

Sakura sighed. "It's okay. I wasn't that angry with you, anyway. It was all directed at Yelan." She frowned. "She had no right to…"

Dan placed both hands on her shoulders. "I understand. But when you're working for the Lis, you have to put up with being pushed around." He gave her a half smile. They remained silent for awhile.

"You know, you owe me for not slapping you across the face in front of all those reporters when you kissed me."

He laughed. "You wouldn't have."

"I had a good mind to. I controlled myself only because you're my friend and I didn't want to embarrass you."

"Okay, then I suppose I owe you," he smiled. "I'll pay you back someday. Right now, you need to get some sleep." He turned around, proceeding to make his way down the hallway. "'night."

"Goodnight Dan."

She closed the door and walked back to her bed. _'When you're working for the Lis, you have to put up with being pushed around,'_ Dan's words repeated in her mind. _'But I'm tired of being pushed around. I've had enough!'_ She sensed the rebel in her craving to show itself. She knew one of these days she was going to lose her patience, and completely go against Li Yelan. She was going to rebel. Even though it would only end up making things worse for her.

The last thoughts she had before drifting off to sleep were about Dan's financial troubles. She had forgotten to ask him about how things were going in that regard. Hopefully, they would pass quickly and not create much trouble…

* * *

_It was a cacophony of sounds._

_The kids were yelling something. A woman was shouting. Tires screeched as a car came to a halt, followed by yells of a man. _

_Then there was the gunshot._

_Her vision cleared and she saw Syaoran, lying in a pool of his own blood. He was still breathing, but barely._

_She jumped hearing the sound of a car engine starting. _

'_She's taking the kids away! I have to stop her!' _"Yes, stop her before she whisks them off, never to be seen and heard from again,"_ a cruel voice spoke in her head._

_But she had to help Syaoran immediately. If she followed Fu, it could become too late for him. She shuddered at the thought._

"Choose, Sakura. Who would you choose? Whose life would you take a chance with? Syaoran's? Or the kids'?"_ The cruel voice was back. _"You have five seconds."

_Five…_

_Four…_

_Three…_

_Two…_

_One…_

Sakura awoke with a start. She had never felt so scared before in her life.


End file.
